A former U.S. Postal Service employee from East Orange has admitted to stealing credit cards and checks from the mail in Montclair and Verona while he was employed.
Parrish Brookins, 30, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to one count of mail theft by a U.S. Postal Service office or employee, Vikas Khanna, U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, announced on Monday.
Brookins covered delivery routes in Montclair and Verona from January 2021 to September 2021, according to documents filed and statements made in court.
Throughout that time multiple credit cards that were addressed to residents in that area were stolen on numerous occasions by Brookins, Khanna said in a news release. Brookins activated the cards and made multiple attempts to make purchases throughout New Jersey and elsewhere.
In addition, Brookins stole stimulus checks that the U.S. Department of Treasury had sent to residents, Khanna said.
In court, Brookins admitted to stealing the items of mail and attempting to make purchases with them, the news release said. He also admitted to selling stolen credit cards to other individuals.
Brookins told the court that in March 2021 he stole more than a dozen stimulus checks from residents on his delivery route, Khanna said. Like the credit cards, the checks were also sold to other individuals for a fee.
Brookins’ sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 15. He could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Khanna credited special agents with the U.S. Postal Service – Office of Inspector General, under the direction of special agent in charge Matthew Modafferi, Northeast Area Field Office, and postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Newark, under the direction of inspector Christopher A. Nielsen, Philadelphia Division, with the investigation leading to the guilty plea. He also thanked IRS – Criminal Investigation, under the direction of acting special agent in charge Tammy L. Tomlins, for its assistance.