Mail Fraud In Montco Leads To 102 Felony Charges Against Philly Man

CHELTENHAM, PA — A Philadelphia man was criminally charged last week in connection with a multi-jurisdictional mail fraud scheme, in which he stands accused of stealing checks out of mailboxes in this and other eastern Montgomery County communities and altering their monetary amounts before cashing them in for his own, personal gain.

The Cheltenham Police Department this past Friday announced the arrest of 22-year-old Keyon Aaron Clark on 102 felony counts relating to a rash of thefts from mailboxes during the past several months.

Police officials said they had been investigating, in conjunction with U.S. Postal inspectors, a case in which multiple checks were stolen out of mailboxes, altered, and then cashed at various financial institutions throughout the region.

Debit cards and other financial instruments were also stolen in the scheme, according to police.

Last Thursday morning, at a little after 3 in the morning, a Cheltenham Township Police sergeant saw a man, later identified as Clark, standing by the drive-up mailboxes at the Elkins Park Post Office, according to police.

Clark ended up taking off running after being approached by the sergeant, according to police. He dropped several pieces of mail during the chase.

Clark was eventually apprehended in a nearby wooded area after police called in a K9 unit for assistance with tracking.

Police say that a vehicle that had been located near where the incident took place was searched after police officers obtained a warrant, and discovered inside it was a stolen handgun, a .22 caliber rifle and additional pieces of stolen U.S. mail, along with deposit slips and other evidence linking the defendant to the thefts, according to the police department.

After searching a criminal database, Cheltenham Police discovered an active arrest warrant for Clark out of North Wales Borough for access device fraud.

Police did not immediately release the total financial loss in the fraud scheme, and officials are asking anyone who has been victimized in this case reach out to Cheltenham detectives.

Other tips can be sent to the department at PoliceTips@cheltenham-township.org.

Court records in the case show that in addition to the 102 felony charges, Clark was also hit with 14 misdemeanor forgery charges, along with misdemeanor counts of possessing an instrument of crime, possession of a weapon, possession of a controlled substance by someone not registered, and use/possession of drug paraphernalia.

Clark was arraigned last Friday before Magisterial District Court Judge Edward Levine, and he was subsequently released on $200,000 unsecured bail.

Unsecured bail means a criminal defendant does not have to put up any money before being released from custody.

A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 13 before Magisterial District Court Judge Christopher Cerski.

All criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.