BALTIMORE — Checks and money orders mailed at several Baltimore-area post offices are being stolen and altered, with victims reporting thousands of dollars in losses.

Following her report, multiple victims have come forward with evidence of forged checks and money orders after mailing payments at local post offices in the Baltimore region.

Amira Mitchell discovered her $500 money order, intended for her late mother's property taxes, had been stolen and altered after mailing it outside of the Windsor Mill Post Office in December.

"I was actually in shock. When I saw [the forged money order], I was like, did I write this? It had me questioning myself, but then I realized there's no way I could have done this. It's not my handwriting. I don't know anyone by this name," Mitchell said.

Mitchell had to pay the property tax bill again, along with a late fee, after the Baltimore City Department of Finance never received her original payment.

"My mother just recently passed away in November of 2024. Her house is paid off, and the one thing she wanted me to do is to take care of home," Mitchell said.

After seeing Sofastaii's report on similar thefts, Mitchell realized she wasn't alone.

"And then when I saw your story, I was like, 'Oh, this is happening. This has been going on, I need to reach out.' So it was your story that just told me that it's not isolated," Mitchell said.

In addition to the Windsor Mill Post Office, the thefts have been reported at multiple locations including the Glyndon Post Office, Arbutus Post Office, Arlington Post Office, and Baltimore Post Office on Fayette Street.

Evidence includes a check from a church mailed outside the Glyndon Post Office, originally written to Verizon for $196 but altered to $2,400 and made payable to an individual.

Another check mailed at the Arbutus Post Office was changed to $4,400, while a check for $3,757 intended for the IRS and mailed at Windsor Mill Post Office, was washed and cashed by someone else. A customer also reported that a greeting card she mailed at the Baltimore Post Office on Fayette Street was returned to her without the gift card.

The FBI issued a warning in January that mail theft-related check fraud is on the rise, with the number of reports doubling from 2021 to 2023.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Postal Service faces staffing challenges with 14 percent fewer postal inspectors than authorized levels (1,228 vs. 1,431) and 37 percent fewer postal police officers (367 vs. 581), according to a 2024 Government Accountability Office report .

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service released a plan to crack down on mail theft last March, focusing on equipping collection boxes with new locks and anti-fishing devices, and strengthening arrow-key accountability—a universal key used to unlock multiple boxes. However, since these payments were mailed at local post offices, the investigation would likely fall to the USPS Office of the Inspector General, which handles internal mail theft complaints.

The USPS OIG recently audited post offices in Sacramento and Houston after deeming them high mail theft target areas. When asked how they make that determination and if there are plans to audit the Baltimore region, a USPS OIG spokesperson responded: "Our site selections were based primarily on high crime zip codes and number of mail theft complaints. Based on our data, we currently have no plans to conduct a mail theft audit in Baltimore."

Mail theft can be reported to the USPS OIG using their hotline .

"It's $500. I just don't have $500 laying around to give to anyone. It was for my mother's property tax," Mitchell said. "My reaction is, I would like to see something done ASAP. If there is an investigation going on, I think the people that's involved, the people that's being affected, I think we should be informed of what's being done."

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service recommends that victims of mail theft file a report with their local law enforcement and contact their financial institution. They should also contact the US Postal Inspection Service either online or via phone (1-877-876-2455).

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