YORK COUNTY, S.C. — Two people were arrested this week after stealing mail from as many as 2,000 people across North Carolina and South Carolina, according to the York County Sheriff’s Department.
Jennings Peter Keziah, 34, of Charlotte, and Tressa Nichole Baucom, 28, of Gastonia, were caught after someone reported the two were throwing mail out of a car in a Lake Wylie Walmart parking lot, deputies said.
More than 3,600 pieces of mail and 74 packages dating back to November of this year were found during the investigation, deputies said. It’s believed the suspects took mail directly from the victims’ mailboxes.
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The pair face multiple counts of mail fraud, including petty larceny, financial card theft and identity theft. Trent Farris with the York County Sheriff’s Office said that’s a felony and a conviction could carry federal prison time and hefty fines.
“They also had some narcotics in their car. So they’re also looking at those charges too,” Farris said.
Deputies said victims in South Carolina are mostly from the Clover, Lake Wylie and York areas. North Carolina victims are from Gaston, Mecklenburg, Caldwell, Union and Rowan counties.
“I think it’s unfortunate that anyone would go and take pieces of mail that don’t belong to them,” Charlotte resident Jvone Barnes said. “Just go and put in a hard day’s work and earn your living.”
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Detectives returned the mail by hand to victims in York County along with information on how to file a report.
“What makes it easy for our investigators is that we have all the names and all of the addresses of all the victims,” Farris said.
The U.S. Postal Service is working with detectives to return mail to North Carolina residents. North Carolina victims will need to contact their local law enforcement agency if they’d like to file a report.
Deputies said the investigation is ongoing.
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