Local News in Brief : 2 Arrested in Postal Theft
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Police have arrested two Los Angeles County men in connection with theft of mail and burglary of a Postal Service vehicle in Costa Mesa, authorities said.
U.S. Postal Service inspector Steve Schneringer said the pair are being investigated for possible links to a group suspected in a string of similar burglaries. They may be “just one of the cogs in the big wheel,” he said.
The San Gabriel Valley has been particularly hard hit, with 23 thefts from postal vehicles since October, Schneringer said.
Florencio Padilla, 26, of Long Beach, and Luis Maldonado, 27, of Los Angeles, were taken into custody Tuesday about 12:25 p.m., shortly after a tray with about 500 letters was taken from a postal vehicle, Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Max Wilson said.
The men were arrested after a witness reported seeing the theft take place. Both men were being held Wednesday in the city’s jail.
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