Former Stamford Postal Worker Pleads Guilty To Mail Theft And Fraud Offenses: Feds

STAMFORD, CT — A former Stamford postal employee pleaded guilty last week to mail theft and fraud offenses, according to a news release from David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

Kierra Blount, 35, currently of Plymouth, N.C., pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years, and one count of unlawful possession of stolen mail, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.

U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala in Hartford scheduled sentencing for Dec. 9.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Blount, at times while employed by the U.S. Postal Service in Stamford, stole mail and obtained stolen mail to find checks that were payable to other people, Sullivan said in a news release.

In approximately November 2021, Blount opened a bank account using the name and social security number of someone without the identity theft victim’s knowledge, Sullivan noted.

Blount and others fraudulently changed the payee names on stolen checks to the name of the identity theft victim, forged the victim’s signature on the back of the checks, and deposited them into the bank account Blount opened, according to Sullivan.

From November 2021 until the account was closed in April 2022, Blount and others deposited approximately $156,000 in fraudulent checks into the account, Sullivan said, adding that some check deposits were reversed by the bank, and Blount and others used approximately $81,000 for their own purposes.

Investigators conducted a court-authorized search of Blount’s Stamford home on June 10, 2023, and seized "a significant amount of stolen mail and other items related to this scheme."

Authorities found items such as debit cards in the names of other individuals, checks totaling more than $285,000, and sheets of paper containing personal information of other individuals, including names, dates of birth, addresses, email addresses, and security question answers, Sullivan said.

A subsequent analysis of cell phones seized from Blount on that date found images of stolen checks, personal identifying information for more than 50 people, and communications on the Telegram app with unknown people involved in the scheme, Sullivan said.

Blount was charged by indictment on March 26, 2024, and she was arrested on June 17, 2024. She is currently released on a $75,000 bond pending sentencing.