Colorado Springs postal carrier arrested for stealing mail

After an investigation involving a letter with a tracking device in it, one Colorado Springs postal worker is now facing charges for stealing mail.

According to the arrest affidavit, investigators found Ryan Medina on December 20th with nearly 80 stolen letters in his bag, approximately half of which were open.

The U.S. Postal Service says agents conducted a sting in which they placed a transmitter inside a letter meant to be delivered to a Colorado Springs PO box.

Agents with the Office of the Inspector General were able to track that transmitter, and it let them know when Medina took the letter. Agents say Medina carried the letter with him throughout his route, then returned to the station with it and carried it with him when he left in his personal vehicle.

The agents then conducted a traffic stop on Medina’s vehicle and asked if he had any mail that didn’t belong to him, according to a news release. Medina denied having any mail, but a search found the satchel in his passenger seat with 79 letters inside. None of them were addressed to Medina.

“The U.S. Postal Service employs more than 630,000 employees and is the largest civilian federal workforce in the country. This type of alleged behavior within the Postal Service is not tolerated and the overwhelming majority of Postal Service employees, which serve the public, are honest, hardworking, and trustworthy individuals who would never consider engaging in any type of criminal behavior,” Jeffery Krafels, Deputy Special Agent in Charge for the USPS OIG Western area said.

The Office of the Inspector General said in October agents investigated missing mail complaints that were supposed to be delivered from the Cheyenne Mountain, or 8th Street station. Medina has been with the postal service for one year and seven months, and is currently on non-duty leave, meaning he’s not delivering mail right now. His mugshot and the full list of charges haven’t been released yet.