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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Thieves Target Checks In Mailboxes

Thieves have been playing postman in the West Valley area, picking up outgoing mail and stealing the checks inside.

Sheriff’s detective Chuck Ellis is warning residents and business owners to give their red flags a rest. To avoid theft, Ellis said, any mail containing checks, or anything else you really care about, should be taken to a post office. Reordered blank checks should be picked up at your bank or credit union.

Stationed in the SCOPE-West Valley station at 9411 E. Trent, Ellis investigates property crimes north of Sprague Avenue between Park and Pines roads.

In the last month, he’s had more than a dozen reports of outgoing checks being stolen from mailboxes in his region.

He believes several thieves are responsible and that many more thefts aftually occurred. Some people don’t yet know they’ve been victimized, he said.

“Some people,” he said, “may not report it.”

Once stolen, the checks are then altered, often by dipping them in a chemical wash that removes ballpoint pen ink. The thieves then make the checks out to themselves, cashing them at banks or supermarkets.

Ellis also has been getting reports of people stealing boxes of reordered blank checks from homes, apartments and businesses. Instead of cashing the checks, the thieves sometimes deposit the money in an account they’ve set up in advance, Ellis said. By doing this, they avoid the suspicion that would accompany their attempts to cash a $6,000 or $7,000 check.

Later, Ellis said, they simply withdraw the money from the account.

“These criminal types are always thinking,” said Ellis, who began noticing a boost in check theft cases a couple months ago.

Unfortunately, he said, victims often don’t find out about the crime until three to six weeks after it happened. That’s when they find discrepancies in their bank statement, or receive notices from the telephone or cable company telling them they’ve missed a payment.

Although check theft is a misdemeanor, the forgery that usually accompanies it is a felony, Ellis said.

To avoid being a victim, Ellis recommends people have new blank checks mailed to their bank or credit union, where they can pick them up. Outgoing mail, especially mail containing checks, should be dropped off at a post office, not left in your home mailbox.

Postal carriers recognize the red flag as a signal, he said, but so do thieves.

, DataTimes