topic Re: USPS Workers Charged in Community Chat

USPS Workers Charged

MorningLover — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 20:23:42 GMT

Houston-area postal workers accused of stealing nearly $24 million in checks

Five people, including three U.S. Postal Service mail carriers, are facing federal charges in an alleged stolen-check operation prosecutors say involved nearly $24 million worth of checks.

A federal grand jury indicted Tryston Tremaine Vaughn, Catherine Clauzelle Kilpatrick, Drakkor Jamar Alexander, Malcolm Tiree Joubert and Alyssa Nadine Bryant.

The indictment, filed Aug. 19 in the Southern District of Texas, accuses the group of participating in a scheme involving checks stolen from the mail and later resold.

Federal prosecutors say the defendants and their co-conspirators acquired and sold approximately $23,973,338.15 in stolen checks.

According to the indictment, Vaughn recruited USPS mail carriers to steal mail, specifically checks, from their routes.

Prosecutors identify Kilpatrick, Alexander and Joubert as the three postal carriers allegedly recruited by Vaughn. Bryant is accused of working with Vaughn to purchase stolen checks from postal employees.

The indictment indicates the operation ran from 2022 to 2024.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

catter70 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 20:38:48 GMT

Nothing is safe anymore. How do you know who to trust?

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Kachina624 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 21:14:48 GMT

That's exactly why I have my bank send all my checks online plus I save on postage. If something is lost or stolen, they fix it.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

shoekitty — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 21:33:17 GMT

@Kachina624 do you know what kind of checks were stolen ? I know my SS and such are directly deposited. I thought perhaps it was going to be mandated this year or next, all SS checks be direct deposit? You wonder how crooks cash them. Or, the person who cashes them can't eventually be caught. But, no worries, I m sure crooks have it all figured out...til they get caught ...with one loop hole they thought they had covered. lol!

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Kachina624 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 21:24:41 GMT

@shoekitty. They must have "connections" because most of us would have no clue as to how to set up such an operation. I'm guessing it's mostly business checks. That's where the money would be.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Tinkrbl44 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 21:35:23 GMT

@shoekitty wrote:
@Kachina624 do you know what kind of checks were stolen ? I know my SS, and such are directly deposited. I thought perhaps it was going to be mandated this year ,or next all SS checks be direct deposit? You wonder how crooks cash them. or the person who cashes them can't eventually be caught. But, no worries, I m sure crooks hbe it all figured out...til they get caught in the one loop hole they thought they covered.

@shoekitty

I generally believe that many crooks just aren't smart enough to get away with the crimes they commit.

I'm no expert, but I don't see how you can cash a stolen check and it NOT be traceable to where it was deposited.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

MorningLover — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 21:47:44 GMT

The operation was executed through a multi-step conspiracy:

1. Recruitment on Inside Mail Routes

An outside organizer, identified as Tryston Tremaine Vaughn, targeted and recruited active U.S. Postal Service (USPS) carriers to act as insiders. The three postal carriers indicted in the scheme were:

Catherine Clauzelle Kilpatrick

Drakkor Jamar Alexander

Malcolm Tiree Joubert

These carriers combed through the mail stream on their specific Houston routes, identifying and physically removing envelopes containing high-value checks.

2. Upfront Purchasing of Stolen Mail

Once the carriers pocketed the checks, Vaughn and a co-conspirator, Alyssa Nadine Bryant, met with the postal workers to buy the stolen mail directly from them. This provided the postal employees with an immediate payout for their theft.

The stolen checks targeted by the group included high-dollar business and personal accounts drawn from major institutions like Chase, Amegy, and BMO Bank. In one instance, carrier Malcolm Joubert successfully stole a single massive check worth $1,517,875.27.

Some of the allegedly stolen checks:

A $9,858.01 check drawn from a Chase account
A $16,636.54 check drawn from an Amegy account
A $79,894.60 check drawn from a Citibank account
A $1,517,875.27 check drawn from a B.M.O. account
A $25,007.25 check drawn from a Stellar account

3. Black Market Sales via Telegram

After acquiring the physical checks, the ring advertised them to buyers on the encrypted messaging application Telegram. They broadcasted the stolen items to criminal networks through a public channel named "slipsandchips".

4. Logistics and Distribution

Once a buyer purchased a check from the Telegram channel, the conspirators packaged the physical check and shipped it across the country to the buyer using FedEx. The buyers would then attempt to alter and cash the checks.

All five individuals are facing federal charges in the

Southern District of Texas, including Bank Fraud, Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud, and Theft of Mail Matter by a Postal Employee.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

shoekitty — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 22:12:58 GMT

@Tinkrbl44 wrote:
@shoekitty wrote:
@Kachina624 do you know what kind of checks were stolen ? I know my SS, and such are directly deposited. I thought perhaps it was going to be mandated this year ,or next all SS checks be direct deposit? You wonder how crooks cash them. or the person who cashes them can't eventually be caught. But, no worries, I m sure crooks hbe it all figured out...til they get caught in the one loop hole they thought they covered.

@shoekitty

I generally believe that many crooks just aren't smart enough to get away with the crimes they commit.

I'm no expert, but I don't see how you can cash a stolen check and it NOT be traceable to where it was deposited.

@Tinkrbl44 that's true!! That's why I was wondering. My granddaughter got conned out of a Zelle scam for a lot of money. He acted as a rep from Zelle, she was 24. They cleaned her acct out in seconds! The bank actually traced it after fraud case was opened up. It took a few months, but bank actually had the acct #, and record of the amount that he took out of her acct thru zelle. The bank turned him into fraud with law enforcement. ..luckily, bank reembursed her for lost money. It was 3 grand!!! They don't do this as protocol. In the process, her bank blocked her zelle acct for life. She was so traumatized, she would never use those money transfer apps again. She learned a hard lesson about fraudsters, scammers and learned how to protect herself better

Re: USPS Workers Charged

shoekitty — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 22:17:55 GMT

@MorningLover wow! That is interesting! Thank you! That's a lot of loot they stole. I can't get get over someone woukd have a hard copy check sent in mail for over a million. Holy mother of Bob Dylan!

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Kachina624 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 22:36:53 GMT

@MorningLover. Thanks for the detailed instructions. I can now get busy making my first million.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Tinkrbl44 — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 22:38:22 GMT

@shoekitty

Want to hear the dumbest crime?

I grew up in WNY, right on the edge of Lake Erie, known for plenty of snow in the wintertime.

A man was stupid enough to break into a bank at night and actually managed to rob it of a fair amount of money and went home. (This was many decades ago.)

The next morning, the bank called the police about the robbery.

The police went out the door to investigate the immediate area and saw footprints. They followed the footprints right to the man's house! He was arrested.

Footprints in the snow led right to the criminal and the money he stole.

How dumb is THAT?

Re: USPS Workers Charged

JeanLouiseFinch — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 22:55:34 GMT

@shoekitty wrote:
@Tinkrbl44 wrote:
@shoekitty wrote:
@Kachina624 do you know what kind of checks were stolen ? I know my SS, and such are directly deposited. I thought perhaps it was going to be mandated this year ,or next all SS checks be direct deposit? You wonder how crooks cash them. or the person who cashes them can't eventually be caught. But, no worries, I m sure crooks hbe it all figured out...til they get caught in the one loop hole they thought they covered.

@shoekitty

I generally believe that many crooks just aren't smart enough to get away with the crimes they commit.

I'm no expert, but I don't see how you can cash a stolen check and it NOT be traceable to where it was deposited.

@Tinkrbl44 that's true!! That's why I was wondering. My granddaughter got conned out of a Zelle scam for a lot of money. He acted as a rep from Zelle, she was 24. They cleaned her acct out in seconds! The bank actually traced it after fraud case was opened up. It took a few months, but bank actually had the acct #, and record of the amount that he took out of her acct thru zelle. The bank turned him into fraud with law enforcement. ..luckily, bank reembursed her for lost money. It was 3 grand!!! They don't do this as protocol. In the process, her bank blocked her zelle acct for life. She was so traumatized, she would never use those money transfer apps again. She learned a hard lesson about fraudsters, scammers and learned how to protect herself better

Something similar happened to me several years ago. My "cousin" listed a couple of cars for sale on Facebook. I knew her husband had passed away so it seemed legit. I FB messaged her about one of the cars that she was selling. She replied with a price that seemed reasonable. She asked for half down, thru a Zelle payment, and if we decided not to buy it after seeing it, she'd refund the original amount in full. She doesn't do a lot online so she said she had a friend helping her with the bank. She gave me the info of where to send the deposit and she would hold the car until we came ti see it in person. Mrs. Gullible went along with it, but the payment wouldn't go through. When I told her, she gave me a different name. That one didn't work either. After the second attempt, I figured something was amiss because the name of where to send the money was totally suspicious. I reached out to her sister and told her what was going on. She informed me that the Facebook account was hacked/cloned/whatever. I mean, these people were pros. There was no way anyone would know. Thank the Good Lord above that the Zelle transfer didn't work!!

Re: USPS Workers Charged

shoekitty — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 00:52:19 GMT

@JeanLouiseFinch isn't it amazing the plots these crooks can scheme up? They sure put a lot of time and energy into these ideas to get someone else's money! I guess it's their full time job! That Facebook scam sure seems like a doosey, Back in the late 70's , early 80's ( before internet, cell phones etc) there were a group of credit card hackers who would rent a hotel room under false names. Then use stolen card to pay for it. They used the hotel room phone to transfer cash out of stolen cards. How it went from there I can remember. I know because my credit card compny called me to verify the transfer!!! In those days it was hard to trace calls from a hotel room. I was trying to figure how they would collect money, I think it was western union office. Using disquise, false ID, and stolen card ...it worked for them a couple years. They were eventually caught.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Tinkrbl44 — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 01:46:49 GMT

@shoekitty @JeanLouiseFinch

Remember when a credit card transaction was on paper ... in triplicate!

I recall the carbon paper backs; then the actual card went into a device, and the paper slip was on top, and the imprint portion was run over the card numbers.

The restaurant/ hotel / whatever had no idea if the cards were any good.

Boy, things have changed.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Desertdi — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 06:53:12 GMT

@Tinkrbl44

One of my first jobs was with Allstate, Division of Sears Roebuck & Co.

I had to BEG THEM for a Sears credit card because I wasn't 21. I told them they could take the money out of my paycheck if I defaulted. They finally "gave in" and I got a card, which was CARDBOARD and filled in by hand by the company cashier.

After I had the Sears card....EVERY store in Chicago was handing me a credit card with no problem.

In addition, the card was marked "employee discount" ...and they even gave me an extra card for my mother to use(!!) di

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Cats3000 — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 10:44:31 GMT

@catter70 For me it's easy. I trust no one because it's difficult, if not impossible, to verify.

Re: USPS Workers Charged

Puzzle Piece — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 11:24:36 GMT

It's real good that those criminals were caught and exposed. While living in the Los Angeles area, several rings and indivisuals were caught. Low life's through and through.