Police Bust 6, Say They 'Fished' Mail Out Of Newton USPS Mailbox

NEWTON, MA — Police arrested six people between the ages of 18 and 22 early Tuesday in connection with a spate of mail thefts from Newton U.S. Post office mailboxes and possibly beyond.

In December, police from Newton, Wellesley and Milton started investigating a string of reports of personal checks placed in U.S. Postal Service mailboxes being intercepted. Police said the names of the "payee" on the checks were altered and the dollar amount of the check were changed, Patch previously reported.

Although it's not clear if the fishing expeditions at U.S. postal service mailboxes are related, they are similar. Police said earlier they believed that after the letters were placed in the mailbox they were "fished" out by someone using a material coated in glue, or another sticky substance, and tied to a string.

Then, Tuesday morning Newton Police said they arrested Ashley Celin Mora, Daury Jesus Moreta, Freddy Alberto Polanco Jr., Brian Manuele Monte, Yeferson Espinola Ovalle and Jonser Hernandez, and charged each of them with conspiracy to break into a depository and possession of burglarious instruments as well as with larceny under $1,200.

Police said someone had tried to "fish" out mail from several U.S. Postal Service mailboxes around Newton. Lincoln police had recently contacted Newton police to let them know they had recovered mail that appeared to come from a mailbox in Newtonville, and they had found a bottle with a sticky substance they believed was used in a similar attempt in that town.

A Newton officer sat in his unmarked car near the Newtonville mailbox to watch it Tuesday morning, according to police. Around 3:45 a.m. he saw person, later identified as Moreta drive up to the mailbox. According to police Moreta and two others got out of the car and the officer watched as they walked up to the mailbox, toss something attached to a string into it, and then pull it out with an envelope attached and then take turns running around to another side of the building with the items and then back to the car they came in.

The officer, who was wearing his uniform, moved his car to block the other car's exit, got out addressed the three, with his weapon drawn and told them not to move. He later saw three more people in that car, and told them not to move. Once other officers got there, police handcuffed the group, according to police. During the investigation police said they found a white envelope on the ground and a black cord still hanging out of the mailbox, which was tied to a plastic bottle with red liquid in it and a sticky substance smeared onto the bottom of the bottle. They also found several envelopes with similar sticky substance on them. During a search of the car police said they found four sticky rodent traps.

RELATED: Police Investigate US Postal Service Thefts

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).