WEST SENECA, N.Y. — A U.S. Postal Service letter carrier assigned to the office in West Seneca is accused of stealing and not delivering mail, including three mail-in voting ballots.
According to a criminal complaint filed in the United States District Court, Brandon Wilson faces federal charges of delay or destruction of mail.
In this complaint, the USPS Office of the Inspector General says they recovered 813 pieces of mail from the trunk of Wilson’s car.
On Tuesday, November 3 at around 7:30 p.m., U.S. Customs and Border Protection stopped Wilson at the Peace Bridge. As a part of a standard CBP sweep, they found a USPS mail bin with numerous mail pieces.
In this complaint, it states Wilson told officers the mail belonged to him and his mother, but he could not account for the other names on the mail pieces.
Of the 813 pieces recovered, officers found:
- 106 political mailings
- 220 first-class mailings
- 484 standard mailings
- 3 absentee ballots
The first-class mailings were destined for zip codes 14227, 14211, 14214, with the majority destined for 14215.
Wilson admitted to placing mail from his delivery routes into his trunk. In the complaint, Wilson is said to have estimated that he did this on four separate occasions since September 2020.
Wilson said he intended to shrink the amount of mailings in his car by placing a small amount of mail into USPS missort containers.
He denied throwing away mail pieces or stealing greeting cards, cash, or checks. He also said he did not know about the three election ballots.
In this complaint, it does not list Wilson’s motive for hoarding these mailings.
The USPS hired Wilson in 2019. He also worked at postal offices in Cheektowaga and the city of Buffalo, including the West Side, East Side and Central Park stations.
When asked for comment, the USPS says it will be releasing a statement.
The full criminal complaint can be found below.