USPS Post Office bin at 411 E. Canon Perdido Street (Photo: Google Maps)
Source: Santa Barbara Police Department
On May 5, 2020, at approximately 6:39 A.M., the Santa Barbara Police Department was dispatched to 411 East Canon Perdido Street regarding the vandalism of a blue United States Postal Service collection bin situated on the sidewalk of the abovementioned address. All mailed items with the exception of one envelope were stolen by the suspect(s).
The Santa Barbara Police Department contacted the United States Postal Service Inspector’s Office and the Santa Barbara Main Postal Office to inform personnel members of the incident. Based on USPS records, the collection bin was last emptied by USPS personnel on May 4, 2020 at 3:30 P.M. USPS planned to remove the vandalized collection bin by end of day, Tuesday. USPS has also submitted the necessary work orders to replace the collection bin with a newer and more secure collection bin.
The Santa Barbara Police Department is requesting anyone who deposited mail in the USPS collection bin at 411 E. Canon Perdido Street between 3:30 P.M. on May 4, 2020 and 6:30 A.M. on May 5, 2020 to please take the necessary precautions to prevent identity theft or other fraud. If you or your business deposited any mail containing a check or other banking information, please contact your financial institution at your earliest convenience to prevent potential fraud.
If you are a victim of fraud due to this incident or other events, you may make an online report by visiting https://www.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/police/online/report_crime/default.asp. In addition, the United States Postal Service requests any incidents of mail theft be reported to 1-877-876-2455 or https://www.uspis.gov/.
SBPD Case 20-21021
They were having the same issue at the drive up boxes in Carpinteria. A sticky substance catching the mail.
Is this vagrant-related or a gang driving in from 101? Not saying it couldn’t be home-grown, but mostly this sort of thing isn’t.
It takes planning skill and a little investment to successfully run a check washing scam. I seriously doubt it’s vagrants.