Former United States Postal Employee Sentenced for Stealing Mail

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – A federal judge today sentenced a former United States Postal employee for stealing mail, announced U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona, United States Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Patrick M. Davis, and U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Ulrich.

U.S. District Court Judge Liles C. Burke sentenced Zachary Rashad Humphrey, 31, of Huntsville, to 18 months in prison followed by three years supervised release. Humphrey pleaded guilty to receipt of stolen mail matter and theft of mail by a postal employee in November 2022.

“Public servants who abuse their positions of trust to personally enrich themselves face serious consequences, including jail time,” said U.S. Attorney Escalona. “I am grateful for the collaboration between federal law enforcement and the Huntsville Police Department to apprehend this defendant and bring him to justice.”

“The defendant in this case took advantage of the public trust that had been bestowed upon him as a U.S. Postal Service employee,” said SAC Davis.  “The U.S. Secret Service stands firm with our federal law enforcement partners in bringing those to justice, who violate that public trust.”

“The vast majority of U.S. Postal Service employees are honest, hardworking individuals who would never dream of violating the public trust in this manner,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Ulrich. “An employee who decides otherwise will be aggressively investigated by our special agents and law enforcement partners. This case is an excellent example of the successful partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to prosecute employees involved in criminal activity and to protect the sanctity of the U.S. Mail.”

According to court documents, Humphrey was employed as a mail carrier with the U.S. Postal Service.   Between March 2022 and April 2022, Humphrey stole checks from mail to be delivered on his route and sold them to associates over the dark web.  The checks Humphrey stole totaled over $40,000. 

The United States Secret Service and the Postal Service Office of Inspector General investigated the case with assistance from the Huntsville Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney John M. Hundscheid prosecuted the case.