Local News in Brief : Police Arrest 3 Suspected in Series of Mail-Truck Burglaries

Two men and a woman who were arrested in connection with burglaries of four mail delivery cars over the weekend are suspects in more than 20 similar crimes in the San Fernando Valley and Glendale since November, authorities said Monday.

Postal Inspector Gary Jensen said the three apparently sifted through stolen mail looking for credit cards and checks.

Elizabeth A. Haney, 27, of Burbank, Matthew D. Massey, 24, of Burbank and Terrence D. Steven, 38, listed by police as a transient, were arrested Saturday in Glendale on suspicion of mail theft, Glendale police said. The arrests stemmed from four burglaries of mail cars Saturday morning, two in Glendale and two in Studio City, Jensen said.

Police found several pieces of stolen mail when they arrested the three at the Miyako Motel on Colorado Street, Jensen said, and more mail was recovered in a trash can.

The postal inspector said the crimes fit the pattern of more than 20 burglaries since November in which mail cars have been looted while parked in residential neighborhoods. The windows have been smashed or locks broken while the mail carriers are delivering, he said.

Steven also was arrested on a forgery warrant, Jensen said.

Jensen said Glendale Police found the three after checking motels on a tip.

Steven and Massey were being held at County Jail and Haney at Sybil Brand Institute for Women.