LAMOINE, Maine — Deputies are searching for clues to identify who has been taking mail from mailboxes in the Lamoine area.
The thefts occurred within the past week and may have happened entirely during this past weekend in a 3- to 4-square-mile area of town, according to Deputy Shane Campbell of the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.
The stolen mail, with many of the envelopes opened, then was dumped on the side of a less traveled road in Lamoine, where it was discovered by a passer-by on Monday, Campbell said.
“A good Samaritan found the mail and he showed us where he’d found it,” the deputy said.
The mail has been returned to the recipients, Campbell said. At this point, nothing appears to be missing, but Campbell pointed out that many of the envelopes contained Christmas cards and no one knows if there were gift cards or money enclosed with any of the cards.
“So far, the response has been, ‘no,’ no one is missing any money,” he said. “But at this time of year, it seems likely that’s what [the thief] was looking for.”
Tampering with mail is a federal crime and Campbell said he has turned over all of his evidence to the U.S. Postal Service.