Dozens of Costly Mailboxes Stolen From Residences

Los Angeles police aren’t making a federal case about this--but they could.

Thieves have been snatching dozens of ornate mailboxes--sometimes leaving the mail curbside--throughout the west San Fernando Valley. Over the last six weeks, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Devonshire Division has logged some 62 theft reports. In the West Valley, about 40 mailboxes were reported stolen.

While it is a federal crime to steal property used by the U.S. Postal Service, police probably will pursue these cases in state court, according to a Postal Inspection Service official. Thefts of this type are typically investigated and prosecuted by local police agencies rather than federal officials, she said.

So while it may not be the crime of the century for the feds, the thefts have left local police puzzled and homeowners upset. In most cases, the thieves are taking the cast-iron boxes by snapping off the support columns at the base; in others, the boxes are pulled out of the ground, dirt and all.

Some residents have reported seeing a dark-colored pickup truck cruising the neighborhoods, but police say they have little to go on.

Because the boxes are made of iron, they are not worth much at recycling centers, where thieves could hope to get only about a penny a pound, police say.

“We can’t figure it out,” said Det. Tom Broad, who is investigating the thefts for the Devonshire police station. “I didn’t think there was a market for these.”

Added Det. Larry Kagele of the West Valley station: “I haven’t the slightest idea what they’re doing with them.”

What authorities do know is that homeowners begin calling on Sunday and Monday mornings reporting thefts that probably occurred between 2 and 4 a.m. The boxes, which typically come in white, green and black, range in price from about $150 to $300.

In one Woodland Hills neighborhood, the mailboxes became a symbol of sorts, representing the aftermath of the Northridge earthquake. Homeowners, who recently remodeled and upgraded their homes after the quake, bought the boxes to complete the new look of their homes--and their neighborhood.

“They were very attractive-looking boxes--like something you’d see in New England,” said Joseph Kontra, whose $170 box probably was stolen Saturday from his front lawn on Aldea Avenue. “Now, we’re just putting up those plain old rural-type boxes. They cost about $19.”

Police say the boxes have been stolen in upscale neighborhoods south of Ventura Boulevard and in Encino, Woodland Hills, Northridge and Chatsworth.

After one particularly busy weekend, the Devonshire Division added an extra patrol in Chatsworth. The thieves moved on--to Northridge.

Northridge resident Bill Greenberg said he went out Sunday morning to his box, key in hand, to get the previous day’s mail.

“I sensed something was missing,” Greenberg said. “All of a sudden, I realized there was no mailbox.”

Others in the Sherwood Forest area of Northridge had the same experience, he said. And now, the residents want to consider the possibility of becoming a gated community.

“Everybody seems shocked that this happened,” Greenberg said. “No one heard anything.”