Mail tampering and parcel theft has been a pain in the side of many Crystal Valley residents, and left empty spaces under their Christmas trees. Local law enforcement is charging people when they can, but also have their hands somewhat tied.
The Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) held a Zoom meeting at the end of October with a United State Post Office (USPS) Inspector General representative, an assistant U.S. district attorney and other local agencies to coordinate a response. At that time, the Inspector General’s office handed over “the investigation of a group stealing federal mail to the local and state agencies,” PCSO Detective Sergeant Brad Gibson told The Sopris Sun.
A PCSO incident report, dated Nov. 9, reiterated that “The USPS told us [PCSO] the federal government will not investigate.”
State statutes
Stealing USPS mail is a federal crime, not state, and therefore leaves the option to only file applicable charges under state statute.
“After that [October] meeting, the PCSO was left to investigate cases of third-degree trespassing involving mail theft, considered a minor offense,” Gibson explained. “However, pursuing legal action against the suspects for trespassing on the CDOT [Colorado Department of Transportation] right-of-way was deemed challenging after consulting with the district attorney’s office.”
“The question of ownership and entry would be somewhat complicated, and it’d be the prosecution’s burden to show that an alleged trespasser knew they had entered onto another’s property,” explained Ninth Judicial Chief Deputy District Attorney Don Nottingham. “There could be an argument that by entering the mailbox a defendant enters onto another’s property, but that might require expert testimony to talk about what easements and other property rights apply …”
Nottingham’s statements were offered as general information, as the deputy district attorney familiar with the PCSO cases was unavailable.
When an “item of value” delivered by USPS is claimed to have been stolen, or a parcel is delivered by a private company (FedEx or UPS, for instance), PCSO can charge for theft under Colorado statute 18-4-401.
“Mail thefts, in and of themselves, are likely to be petty offenses,” said Nottingham. “They could be prosecuted in state court, but the penalties are very minor.”
Investigation challenges
Another challenge is that most of the thefts have occurred in the wee hours of the morning (typically between 2 and 5am), when there are no witnesses and it’s more difficult to identify someone on camera.
Since June, there have been cameras installed at two homeowners associations (HOAs) in the Crystal Valley. PCSO monitors the cameras on the Crystal River Road regularly, and will check them when they receive a report of a stolen item.
Documented license plates are great because a registered vehicle can lead to a suspect. Whereas if the footage is of an individual, the person needs to already be known by law enforcement in order to track them down.
According to the Nov. 9 incident report, PCSO was able to identify two suspects by confirming their identities with neighboring law enforcement agencies. The suspects were caught on a PCSO camera at Bill Creek Road in the Crystal Valley going through mailboxes. It would seem like an open and shut case, but PCSO was not able to locate the suspects to serve a summons for the petty trespass offense. While it’s believed they live in Garfield County, according to the report, the suspects did not have current addresses known to law enforcement.
In November, the PCSO arrested another suspect on an unrelated felony warrant and “took advantage of [the] opportunity and charged the individual with third-degree trespassing for earlier mail thefts.” On Dec. 12, The Sopris Sun was told that the same suspect had been recorded on a PCSO camera stealing mail in the Crystal Valley, so a theft charge was added. However, on Dec. 18, PCSO informed The Sopris Sun that it did not appear that packages nor items of value were stolen, leaving the department and the District Attorney’s office, yet again, at an impasse.
According to Gibson, there’s a group of suspects known by law enforcement to carry out this type of crime in the tri-county area. However, without sufficient evidence directly implicating someone with a specific incident, such as video surveillance or an eye-witness account, there is no means to file a charge.
“If we can’t prove it’s them, then we can’t charge them,” Gibson told The Sopris Sun, “but we know it’s them.”
The three counties are working together to address the elusive situation.
The Sopris Sun was not able to obtain an interview with the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office ahead of press time, but did receive some data from its records department. The data reflects that, since January 2022, there have been 32 mail/package theft related cases in the county.
What you can do
Gibson has reached out to the Crystal Valley community through its Facebook group, Crystal Valley Swap, offering to install cameras. PCSO shared information on how to obtain secure mailboxes and package receptacles with the Crystal River Caucus to pass along to the larger community.
“The most effective way to stop mail thefts is to remove unsecured mailboxes,” said Gibson. “Some HOAs have successfully transitioned to secure mailboxes and package drops.”
Gibson added, “A couple more PCSO cameras are available to place at other mailboxes, with the HOA’s or mailbox owner’s permission.” He emphasized that if they can get two more cameras up in the area, there is a better chance of identifying suspects.
If someone would like PCSO to install a camera at their mailboxes, contact Gibson at 970-920-5250.