Hitting Home: Postman Accused Of Stealing And Selling Stamps

A former co-worker of mine has landed himself into some serious legal trouble. It’s quite depressing because he was (is) a good guy. Lots of laughs and did his job well. But apparently his financial situation (impending foreclosure) caused him to engage in criminal activities:

Postman Accused of Stealing, Selling Stamps
WXYZ.COM (Detroit)/Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) – Authorities say a rural postal carrier in suburban Detroit stole and sold stamps worth nearly $20,000 because he was behind on his mortgage.

Postal agents confronted John Auito on April 30 outside his home in Macomb. He told agents that he typically sold the stamps at a 15 percent discount. Auito contacted people who had participated in stamp auctions on eBay.

The 42-year-old Auito is charged with stealing stamps that were being shipped to retailers in his delivery area. A message seeking comment was left at his home Monday.

Auito was caught after agents placed him under surveillance. He told agents that he began taking stamps in September because he feared foreclosure.

Here is the video of the story by reporter Michael Rosenfield:

What my former co-worker did is wrong. And according to federal laws, he will have to do some prison time (even though he’s admitted to the crime). Regular folks fall hard when they cross the line. No superstar legal team to his defense. But I firmly believe in if “you do the crime, you do the time”. All that being said, I hope that he and his family find the strength to persevere through this difficult situation.