NEWARK, N.J. — A former New Jersey postal worker pleaded guilty to stealing credit cards and stimulus checks, prosecutors said Monday.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, Parrish Brookins, 30, of East Orange, pleaded guilty to one count of mail theft by a U.S. Postal Service officer or employee.
According to court documents, Brookins was a postal letter carrier in the towns of Montclair and Verona between January 2021 and September 2021, NJ.com reported.
According to prosecutors, credit cards that were allegedly stolen by Brookins were activated and used “to make and attempt to make fraudulent purchases” in New Jersey and other venues.
In addition, “numerous” stimulus checks mailed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury addressed to third-party victims in Verona were stolen along routes that Brookins covered, prosecutors said.
According to the news release, Brookins admitted in court that he stole the credit cards, used them to make purchases and then sold them to other persons. He also stated that he took more than a dozen stimulus checks from the mail in March 2021 and sold them to a third party for a fee.
According to the Treasury Department, the stimulus checks, also known as economic impact payments, were issued in amounts of $1,400 for single individuals and $2,800 for married couples plus an additional $1,400 for each dependent, NJ.com reported.
Brookins’ attorney, Hassen Abdellah, declined a request for comment from McClatchy News.
The mail theft charge is punishable by a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a up to a $250,000 fine, prosecutors said. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 15, 2023.