US: Washington DC postal employee steals nearly USD 1.7 million from residents

Washington, DC [US]: A US Postal Service worker in Washington, DC, has allegedly stolen around USD 1.7 million from its residents, Wtopnews reported citing a court document.

As per the Wtopnews website, the civil forfeiture filing ordered the seizure of USD 402,669.95 from the bank account, believed to be operated by the US Postal Service worker, Hachikosela Khose Muchimba, at the Friendship Post Office Station.

Officials believe the amount may be less than half of the total amount of fraudulent deposits made across eight bank accounts, as per Wtopnews.

Wtopnews is a Washington DC-based news website.

The filing further read that Muchimba had deposited around 98 misappropriated checks into those accounts with an aggregate value of USD 1,697,909.52. And at least 90 of those misappropriated checks were US Treasury checks.

Investigators included checks stolen from residents dating back to December 13, 2021 — Muchimba was first employed as a mail carrier on February 16, 2020, and was assigned to the route in question beginning on January 31, 2021.

The investigators believed that Muchimba altered checks from the US Treasury and added his name and address before depositing them to bank accounts via mobile apps.

After a search warrant was served on March 29, law enforcement also recovered receipts for the deposit of more than USD 400,000 into an Olney, Maryland bank account, the filing states, reported Wtopnews.

Prosecutors argue that Muchimba was pinned as a potential account holder after a person noticed that the name signed to an altered check matched holiday cards provided by Muchimba to residents last December.

The filing also depicts the mail carrier at local ATMs, making withdrawals of up to USD 1,000 from the named accounts.

“Surveillance photographs captured the same person withdrawing USD 1,000 … on four subsequent dates: September 20, 22, 28 and October 6,” the filing said. “In three of the surveillance photographs, the person appears to be wearing US Postal Service clothing typically worn by employees.”

Officials with the US Postal Service Inspector General told “our news partners at NBC Washington that an investigation is ongoing,” and a representative for USPS said the employee remains on the rolls of the USPS.

Filings from the attorney general, however, call Muchimba a “former” postal service employee, reported Wtopnews.