Image Credit: Knox County Sheriff’s Department & Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Adelia Kirchner] –
28-year-old U.S. Postal Service (USPS) worker, Dontray Ligon, is facing felony charges in Knox County for stealing almost $1 million in mailed checks according to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO).
On Sunday, October 5th, KCSO says that one of their deputies conducted a traffic stop on Clinton Highway at approximately 1:40pm in the afternoon.
The deputy approached the black Infiniti SUV and reported that the car smelled like marijuana.
Ligon was riding in the front passenger seat and told the deputy that the SUV was his, giving the officer permission to search it.
Two large lunchboxes containing “check-related mail that investigators believe to be stolen” were discovered in the car search.
“The suspect was taken into custody without incident. The investigation was turned over to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Property Crimes Unit,” said KCSO.
According to a KCSO spokesperson, the stolen checks were totaled up to $972,051.63.
Authorities have since connected the checks to multiple victims.
“Ligon stated that he is an employee of the U.S. Postal Service in Knoxville, where the mail is believed to have been stolen from,” KCSO shared.
Ligon is being charged with a Class A felony for theft of $250,000.00 or more and a Class A felony for mail theft of $250,000.00 or more.
USPS is working with local law enforcement to further investigate the criminal matter and Ligon is no longer working for USPS.
“We are currently conducting an investigation into this matter. I can tell you that Mr. Ligon is not working for the USPS at this time,” USPS public information officer, Charlene Cerra, said in an official statement.
“The Postal Service employs more than 625,113 employees and is the largest civilian federal workforce in the country. This type of behavior within the Postal Service is not tolerated and is a rare occurrence,” Cerra continued. “It is important for the public we serve to know the overwhelming majority of Postal Service employees are honest, hardworking, and trustworthy individuals who would never consider engaging in any type of criminal behavior.”
Cerra added that the independent federal agency considers allegations of mail theft by any of their USPS employees to be a “very serious issue.”
“When such allegations are made, USPS OIG Special Agents vigorously investigate those allegations, as we did in this instance,” said Cerra.
According to WVLT, the Executive Director of Crime Stoppers, Stacey Payne, says that an increase of stolen mail is typical around this time of year going into the holiday season.
“Unfortunately, we’ve also seen checks stolen from the postal boxes sitting outside the U.S. Postal Service,” said Payne, who explained that people should avoid sending physical checks through the mail if possible.
She added that if a check must be written and sent through the mail, that an individual should go inside a USPS location and hand the mail directly to a worker.
Payne also said that it is helpful to write on the check using a gel ink pen because the ink “will actually go into the fibers of the check and make it next to impossible to wash.”
About the Author: Adelia Kirchner is a Tennessee resident and reporter for the Tennessee Conservative. Currently the host of Subtle Rampage Podcast, she has also worked for the South Dakota State Legislature and interned for Senator Bill Hagerty’s Office in Nashville, Tennessee. You can reach Adelia at adelia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Yup, DEI hire.