U.S. Postal Service Employee Indicted for Theft of Postal Money Orders

BOSTON – A U.S. Postal Service (USPS) employee has been indicted for allegedly embezzling over $19,000.

Christine Hedges, 46, of Brockton, was indicted yesterday on one count of theft of government money. She will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.

According to the indictment, Hedges began working for USPS around 2020, most recently as a Lead Sales & Service Associate in Brockton. In this role, Hedges had the ability to generate postal money orders, including replacement money orders. Customers could obtain replacement money orders without paying any additional fees if the original money orders were lost, damaged or erroneous. During the relevant period, it is alleged that Hedges issued over $19,000 worth of replacement money orders to herself or other individuals where the original money orders were not erroneous and had not been lost or stolen, which caused the USPS to incur losses of $19,000. 

The charge of theft of government money provides a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia M. Carris, Deputy Chief of the Public Corruption & Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.