Postal worker ‘rifled through’ letters, stole gift cards from Louisiana mail, feds say

A postal worker “rifled through” letters and stole contents of envelopes, including gift cards, from a Louisiana mail processing center, according to federal prosecutors.

During a “covert surveillance operation” at a New Orleans processing facility in July 2020, the woman was seen removing greeting cards from letter trays, going through them and then throwing them away, according to court documents.

Agents later found “several rifled-through greeting cards and a variety of stolen gift cards” in her vehicle, documents say.

She pleaded guilty to theft of mail matter on Dec. 8, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Louisiana.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 2, 2023, the release says. The woman’s attorney declined a request for comment from McClatchy News.

The woman faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 or more than twice the gross amount that was stolen from the victims, up to three years of supervised release, the release says.