A Red Deer man faces a number of charges after RCMP located him in possession of numerous pieces of stolen mail last week.

At 2 a.m. on Sept. 20th, Red Deer RCMP responded to a report of theft of mail in progress in the Westlake neighbourhood after a citizen saw two men breaking into a community mailbox. RCMP located the two men on Wiley Crescent and the pair fled on foot on seeing police approach. Police arrested one suspect after a brief foot chase and seized numerous pieces of stolen mail, what is believed to be methamphetamine, and break-in tools.

Brandon Aart Speelman, 24, has been charged with two counts of theft from mail under $5,000, possession of Schedule I substance (meth), possession of break-in instruments, resisting/obstructing a peace officer and failing to comply with probation.

“Red Deer RCMP are recovering increasing amounts of stolen mail during arrests, and it corresponds to increased attempts at identity theft,” said Const. Derek Turner of the Red Deer RCMP. “Thieves aren’t just looking for gift cards or credit information – they’re using stolen personal information they gather to access your bank accounts, open new ones in your name, apply for loans and new credit cards, and fraudulently receive government benefits. And sometimes, if they have enough personal information, they’re successful.”

RCMP work in partnership with Canada Post to prevent and investigate theft of mail files, and encourage customers to report any suspicious activities regarding mail to Red Deer RCMP at 403-343-5575 or to Canada Post.

Find more information about identity theft here: http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/scams-fraudes/id-theft-vol-eng.htm

Find more information about protecting yourself from mail theft here: https://www.canadapost.ca/web/en/kb/details.page?article=how_to_prevent_mail_&cattype=kb&cat=security&subcat=identifytheft

– Fawcett