August 11, 2021-Mail Thefts

Dear Residents,

Recently there have been a number of thefts from residential mailboxes in our area. To get a better understanding of this issue and determine what actions can be taken, a meeting was held on August 5 with Laurel Hollow and OBC elected officials, the OBC Police Chief, US Postal Inspectors and Nassau County police detectives. A review of this meeting is below:

The Police Chief and the US Postal Inspectors reviewed the overall issue. There is a group stealing mail out of residential mailboxes late at night in various North Shore communities, including Brookville, Muttontown, East Norwich, Oyster Bay Cove, Laurel Hollow and Lloyd Neck.  They steal as much mail as they can by going from mailbox to mailbox, sort it later for checks and possible social security numbers, then dump the rest of the mail somewhere roadside. It is likely that a sophisticated, well organized group, operating from out of the area, is behind these thefts. Four of the suspected “underlings” involved have been arrested multiple times. When arrests have been made, the alleged suspects have been represented by private attorneys and are immediately released.  

Generally the thefts occur in small cul-de-sacs off main roads where they aren’t likely to be observed at night and where they can get in and out quickly.  

Police and Postal Inspectors emphasized that residents should not engage anyone they might observe or suspect is stealing mail, instead they should promptly notify the police. Similarly, if residents come across large amounts of discarded mail, they should leave it undisturbed and notify the police.

The US Post Office will be sending a letter to all residents of OBC and Laurel Hollow advising them of these activities and what specific actions residents can take to protect their mail.

Richard MacDougall

Deputy Mayor