A Coquitlam resident whose mail disappeared over Christmas was the victim of a credit card scam that could have long-standing financial repercussions.
Soegi Hartono returned from his Christmas vacation in January to find that his community mail box was empty and packages and mail he'd expected to receive never arrived.
Hartono called the Tri-City News in early January to find out if others living on Westwood Plateau had mail go missing as well, and when his mail started arriving and Canada Post closed his file without speaking to him he thought the matter was solved.
He couldn't have been more wrong. Last week, Hartono's wife received a phone call from her bank that $3,000 had been spent on her credit card, which, it turns out, had been stolen from the mail box, and the thief also used the credit card to get other financial and credit details through Equifax.
"They found out that who ever is stealing her credit card spent $3,000 already," Hartono said, "This is pretty serious."
Thankfully, the credit card transactions are being treated as theft, and the couple is spending extra fees monthly to monitor any future unauthorized requests for financial information.
But Hartono wants other residents to know that the theft occurred so people can take precautions.
"I want people to be aware of this thing, it sounded like it's everybody's problemWhy do we have to have a community box? We want it to be safer but it is not," said Hartono.
A Canada Post official stated in an email he would make inquiries.
Meanwhile, Coquitlam RCMP have confirmed a number of thefts were reported over Christmas but Cpl. Jamie Chung said it was only a few and not all of them were in the Westwood Plateau area.
"These bad guys they don't just zero in on one specific area, they just basically drive around and find a mail box that is vulnerable and a place that is dark and removed with not much mail traffic."
However, Chung said police are getting fewer complaints about mail thefts these days because residents are more careful about retrieving their mail, and new mail boxes are being stalled that are harder to break into.
He advises people to pick up their mail frequently, or, if they are away or can't get to it have a friend or neighbor collect it. Canada Post also offers a Hold Mail service.
Mail Theft Prevention Tips
The following tips have been provided by the Coquitlam RCMP
Don't leave it in the mail box, collect your mail promptly
Plan ahead, if yo'll be away have Canada Post hold your mail
If you are sending a valuable package, let the recipient know so they are aware if it doesn't show up
File a change of address with the post office when you move
Pay attention to monthly billing cycles, contact companies immediately to ensure bills have not been fraudulently re-directed
Shred documents that contain personal financial information
