Bellevue police detectives have arrested four suspects in two separate mail cases in the past week, confiscating hundreds of pieces of mail. Most recently, on Sunday, May 3rd, at 3:45 pm, a resident reported an attempted mail theft in the 300 block 167th Ave NE.
The resident says she witnessed a U-Haul truck driving through the neighborhood, stopping and looking in mailboxes. Twenty-one minutes after the report, officers located the van about a mile away.
Both suspects, a 24-year-old male, and a 38-year-old female, were arrested at the scene. Officers located five stolen credit cards on the male suspect. A search warrant on the van produced several hundred pieces of mail, filling a garbage bag, four backpacks, and a toolbox. Detectives also found several stolen checks and checkbooks.
In a second mail theft case, a resident reported that an alarm on his mailbox alerted him to someone opening the box on Sunday, April 26th, just after midnight in the 300 block 109th Ave SE. Officers quickly located the suspects nearby, walking a dog. Investigators noticed nine mailboxes open in the immediate area. Following the arrests, officers searched a suspect’s backpack and recovered 39 pieces of mail from 12 different addresses.
Detectives are working with the US Postal Inspection Service and will sort through the all the items, identify the victims, and return the stolen mail.
Report all mail thefts to the Bellevue Police department by calling 911 if the theft is in progress or online if it’s an older crime. Also, contact the US Postal Inspection Service. Residents are urged to take precautions to prevent mail theft, as incidents have increased during the COVID19 pandemic.
- Make sure you have a locking mailbox with the sturdiest lock you can get.
- Don’t let mail sit in your mailbox. Mail theft is a crime of opportunity; remove the mail, so there’s nothing to take. Find out your mail delivery time and immediately pick up the mail.
- Sign up for USPS Informed Delivery. This free service allows you to preview your mail and track packages digitally.
- When ordering merchandise, track packages, and be home when they are delivered.
- Work with neighbors to pick up each other’s packages if you must be away.
- Send outgoing mail at the post office or deposit close to pick up time.
- If you can’t pick up your mail, use Hold for Pick Up through USPS.
Case # 20-21598 Case # 20-20521


There are also more pedestrians and cyclists out during the stay-home measures, and that makes increased speed, combined with distracted driving, even more dangerous. Captain Nault urged drivers to pay attention, “The likelihood of a pedestrian being killed is only 5% if a car strikes them at 20 mph but jumps to 40% if that same car is only going ten mph faster. These collisions are preventable, that’s what’s so tragic.”
It’s National Volunteer Week, and the Bellevue Police Department volunteer program was just honored as one of the best! Governor Jay Inslee and Serve Washington recognized BPD’s 26-year-old volunteer program as the top Citizen Corps Program in the state.
Volunteer Program Administrator Marji Trachtman started the program in 1994 and has seen 198 volunteers come and go over the decades. “People can make such a positive difference in their community through volunteerism, and it has such an impact on each person’s life,” Trachtman said about her experience. “In addition to feeling an enhanced sense of purpose, many make lifetime friendships. It’s a privilege to be a part of this process.”

