Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. announced the indictment of postal worker DESTINY ANDERSON, 35, and her partner, ANTHONY JOHNSON, 34, for stealing credit cards and hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of checks from the mail. As alleged, the defendants would either sell the stolen credit cards and checks to other individuals or use them for personal benefit. ANDERSON, who was a United States Postal Service employee (USPS) stationed in Midtown, is charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with two counts of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree and one count of Conspiracy in the Fifth Degree. JOHNSON is charged in a New York State Supreme Court indictment with one count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, three counts of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, one count of Attempted Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, and one count of Conspiracy in the Fifth Degree. [1]
“We allege Destiny Anderson and Anthony Johnson brazenly stole checks and credit cards from the mail for their own personal gain. This type of conduct can be extremely harmful to the many Manhattanites who depend on reliable mail service for their paychecks or other important financial documents,” said District Attorney Bragg. “Public employees who take advantage of their jobs at the expense of others will be held accountable. I thank the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service for their partnership in this investigation.”
Special Agent in Charge Matthew Modafferi, United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG), Northeast Area Field Office said “The Special Agents of the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General will continue to maintain the integrity of the U.S. Postal Service and its personnel. The conduct alleged is disgraceful, and our office will continue to vigorously investigate Postal Service employees and their co-conspirators who violate the public’s trust. This case serves as an excellent example of the successful collaboration between the USPS OIG, our law enforcement partners and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office to pursue and prosecute Postal Service employees involved in criminal activity. The USPS OIG is thankful for the relationships with our law enforcement partners and the District Attorney’s Office for their dedication and efforts in this investigation.”
“It is always disheartening when the theft of U.S. Mail and identity theft is committed, especially when these alleged crimes are committed by someone that betrays the trust of the American public and blatantly disregards their duty to reliably deliver our customers’ mail. Through initiatives like Project Safe Delivery, postal inspectors are committed to improving the safety of our employees and the security of the mail. I commend the investigative efforts of our postal inspectors, the USPS-Office of the Inspector General and the NYPD who worked together with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office to put an end to this spree of financial crimes,” said USPIS New York Division Inspector in Charge Daniel B. Brubaker.
According to court documents and statements made on the record in court, JOHNSON and ANDERSON operated their scheme between May 14, 2021, and March 10, 2022.
ANDERSON was a United States Postal Service employee stationed at 322 West 52nd Street, also known as the “Radio City Post Office”, which is the only post office servicing the mailing 10019 zip code.
ANDERSON’s responsibilities included sorting mail and acting as a mail “relay” truck driver transporting bags of mail to designated locations within the 10019 zip code.
ANDERSON would allegedly identify and take envelopes containing credit cards or checks. One check was in the amount of over $387,000, and another was for $21,500. She did this in coordination with JOHNSON who would often encourage and direct ANDERSON to steal the envelopes.
Once the credit cards or checks were obtained, ANDERSON and JOHNSON would use them for their personal benefit or sell and attempt to sell them to other individuals, including through Instagram. The defendants would then be repaid through Zelle or CashApp. They used the stolen credit cards to purchase items at Yves Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, B&H Photo, BJ’s Wholesale, and Duane Reade.
Assistant D.A.s Benjamin Reed (Financial Frauds Bureau) and Alexander Sanyshyn (Financial Frauds Bureau) are handling the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Kelly Thomas (Deputy Bureau Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau), Hope Korenstein (Deputy Bureau Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau), Kofi Sansculotte (Bureau Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau), and Jodie Kane (Chief of the Rackets Bureau and Acting Chief of the Investigation Division). Investigative Analyst Jade Yang and Paralegal Leila Mohamed are providing valuable assistance. Former Paralegal Krisellie Acevedo also provided valuable assistance.
D.A. Bragg thanked the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General and the United States Postal Inspection Service for their partnership in this investigation.
