Alleged Mail Thieves Caught On Apartment Building Surveillance Video
STUDIO CITY (CBSLA.com) — Police are asking residents of apartment buildings in Studio City to be on the lookout for brazen mail thieves.
Authorities believe the duo may be using a Postal Service master key to gain access to buildings and mailboxes.
Stealing mail, of course, is a Federal crime.
One recent theft was caught on apartment building surveillance video. That apartment is located on Laurel Canyon Boulevard at Valley Spring Lane.
CBS2's Art Barron reports, tenants were looking at the security video to see if they could identify someone who broke into an SUV when they also caught the same pair -- it looks like a man and a woman -- stealing mail.
Barron spoke to concerned residents who said they felt violated.
"It is our mail, our property," said one woman. "They could have credit card statements, our W-2s, our Social Security numbers."
"We would never have known about the mail if we weren't checking for car [theft]," said John Polito, the association president.
After allegedly stealing the mail, the duo got on an elevator, went to the garage and then grabbed the registration and insurance information from a resident's SUV.
Officials believe the duo could have gotten the master key from a postal employee or been hired themselves as seasonal workers.
"Unfortunately, we have reports of similar crimes taking place this weekend," said Lt. McNeill Gardner with the LAPD.
"If they have a postal key, they could use that key up and down the block," said Polito.
If you recognize the people in the video or still image, you're asked to call police.
