Surveillance video captures bold mail truck break-in near San Pablo
East Bay postal truck break-in caught on video
A postal truck break-in was caught on surveillance video Monday morning in an East Bay neighborhood.
SAN PABLO, Calif. - A postal truck break-in was caught on surveillance video Monday morning in an East Bay neighborhood.
The theft happened around 10 a.m. in the Rollingwood neighborhood near San Pablo.
Video shows a Lincoln Nautilus SUV slowly backing up to a U.S. Postal Service truck while the mail carrier is out on the street delivering mail.
A suspect, who appears to be a woman, gets out of the SUV carrying what appears to be a bright yellow crowbar. After a few tries, she forces open the truck's rear roll-up door, steals mail, and runs back to the SUV before driving away.
Woman may be tied to other thefts
What they're saying:
U.S. Postal Inspector Matthew Norfleet said investigators believe the woman may be linked to additional mail thefts in the area.
"We believe there may be others, so we think this person might be committing the same crime in that area repeatedly," Norfleet said.
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Norfleet said break-ins involving postal trucks happen frequently and are often crimes of opportunity.
"Unfortunately this is probably something between a daily and a weekly occurrence across the Bay Area," he said.
He said thieves typically look for anything with monetary value, including checks, credit cards and other items that can be turned into cash.
The mail carrier returned to find the truck's rear door damaged.
Mail theft probed by Berkeley police
What we know:
In Berkeley, KTVU learned that a mail thief bypassed a locked security gate and entered an apartment building on Benvenue Avenue in the Southside neighborhood near UC Berkeley about three weeks ago.
Two residents reported credit cards stolen from their mailboxes. One victim said the thief used her Chase credit card to pay a $162 cellphone bill.
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UC Berkeley neuroscience student Chappelle Veal, who lives in the building, said the theft has been especially frustrating for students who rely on the mail.
"It's super unfortunate because the student community — a lot of our family members are out of this area, so a lot of the mail comes from family members outside the state," Veal said.
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source: This report is based on information from U.S. postal inspectors and Alameda County court records.