Thieves Target South Loop Neighbors' Community Mailboxes, Apparently Have Keys
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Some South Loop residents' mailboxes are becoming the scenes of a crime – and homeowners are fed up with thieves who are stealing their mail.
As CBS 2's Jermont Terry reported, the thieves are using a method we've seen before. They have keys.
In the Dearborn Park II area just west of State Street and south of Roosevelt Road, a bank of community mailboxes are how homeowners get their mail.
On Wednesday morning, the mailboxes were all open and empty.
"I was actually going past the mailboxes, and I saw that they were wide open, and most of them looked like they were totally empty," said Mary Lastrapes.
Sadly, Lastrapes said such thefts are becoming all too common.
"I would say the last six weeks to two months, it's been problematic," she said.
That's right. The boxes are secure, but the mail has still been stolen.
"The only way they could get in was with the keys that only the postal carriers have," Lastrapes said.
It's a case of déjà vu. Thieves have been caught on video using the master keys postal workers carry to get into secure mailboxes – and the crimes span the South and West Loops.
"It's not uncommon," Lastrapes said.
In fact, it's so rampant that Lastrapes' homeowners' association sent a letter alerting people of the crime, and even posted signs warning residents.
But Lastrapes does not think that is sufficient.
"No, I don't think it's enough at all," she said. "I think they have to find a way to secure the mailboxes right away."
Last month, CBS 2 reported how police arrested Aliyah Massari in the West Loop. Police said officers found stacks of stolen mail in her car, and five master keys.
"I'd say she must not be the only one doing this, and if they can get our mail, you're susceptible for identity theft and who knows what," Lastrapes said.
The homeowners' association is working on changing how mail is delivered.
But if the problem starts with the postal keys, Lastrapes said: "What's the solution? How can they change those keys immediately?"
One neighbor said she has to watch for the mail person to deliver the mail and go out within 10 minutes, because that is the only guaranteed way she can make sure her mail is secure.
