MINEOLA, N.Y. – Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that a couple from The Bronx was arraigned on a grand jury indictment on January 23 for allegedly mailbox fishing in Atlantic Beach.
Yoli Gomez Osoria, 27, and Andrea Rose Gomez, 28, both of The Bronx, were arraigned before Judge Robert Bogle and charged with:
- 36 counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the First Degree (a C felony)
- Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fourth Degree (an E felony)
- Nine counts of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Fifth Degree (an A misdemeanor)
- Possession of Burglar’s Tools (an A misdemeanor)
- Attempted Petit Larceny (a B misdemeanor)
The defendants were released on their own recognizance and are due back in court on February 14. If convicted, they face a maximum of five to 15 years in prison.
“These defendants allegedly tried to swipe outgoing mail on Christmas morning by dangling a glue-coated bottle in a mailbox,” DA Singas said. “Quick action by an NCPD officer caught these alleged thieves in the act, and our prosecutors will hold them accountable.”
DA Singas said on December 25, 2019, a Nassau County Police Department patrol officer, while on routine rounds, observed Osoria standing in front of mailboxes outside of the Atlantic Beach Post Office, with both hands inside one of the boxes. When the defendant noticed the officer, he allegedly ran away and threw a plastic bottle over a fence.
The bottle, later recovered by police, was filled with an unknown liquid and coated with a sticky substance on the outside, with a white string attached.
After a brief chase, Osoria was captured by the officer near his car that his wife, Gomez, was sitting in with the passenger door open. Inside the vehicle, behind a loose panel in the center console, officers discovered a brown paper bag containing 35 $100 bills, one $50 bill, and a $100 check, which neither defendant was the payee nor the account holder of. The 36 bills were later determined to be forged.
Osoria and Gomez were arrested, and during the arrest process, police found an additional check in Osoria’s possession, which neither defendant was the payee or the account holder of.
Additionally, police found seven sealed envelopes, covered in the same sticky substance as the plastic bottle inside Gomez’s purse, and a further investigation determined the envelopes and checks to be stolen. One of the envelopes contained a $2,800 check. During a later search of the vehicle, police found a glue mouse trap, believed to be of the same consistency as what was found on the bottle.
In total, the NCDA believes five people were victimized by the defendants.
“Postal Inspectors give their thanks to NCPD and DA Singas and her staff for being on the lookout for criminals who steal from our nation’s mail system. Their dedication to an American tradition and our efforts to keep the mail safe is an example of great collaboration between law enforcement,” said Inspector in Charge Philip R. Bartlett.
The U.S. Postal Inspection service recommends the following to protect your outgoing mail:
- Deposit outgoing mail at a local Post Office location or hand mail to a uniformed USPS letter carrier
- Use a blue USPS collection box – be sure to deposit mail before the last pickup time of the day
- Try not to let your outgoing mail sit in your personal mailbox overnight
Assistant District Attorneys Michael Davidman and Salima Labeb of DA Singas’ County Court Trial Bureau are prosecuting this case. Lenny Isaacs, Esq. represents Osoria and Max Sullivan, Esq. represents Gomez.
The charges are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless found guilty.
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