Source: Office of United States Attorneys
ALBANY, NEW YORK – Sean A. Walter, age 30, of Humble, Texas, pled guilty today to stealing business checks out of the U.S. Mail by repeatedly and unlawfully entering a mail sorting facility in Albany.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Daniel Hanlon; Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge, United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG), Northeast Region; and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the Boston Division of the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).
Walter admitted that on six occasions in 2023 and 2024, he unlawfully entered the USPS Albany Processing and Distribution Center (PDC) on Karner Road, in order to steal mail that he believed contained business checks. For instance, at approximately 12:56 a.m. on January 23, 2024, Walter entered the Albany PDC by forcefully pulling up a retractable overhead door to the facility. Once inside, he went to a large room where USPS employees were sorting mail and then stole a variety of mail. Walter placed the stolen mail in his backpack and exited the Albany PDC at around 2:31 a.m. He then re-entered the Albany PDC two more times that night and stole more mail on each occasion.
According to the criminal complaint in this case, Walter was arrested on May 14, 2024, after being confronted by security guards inside of the Albany PDC and fleeing to a nearby motel.
The mail that Walter stole included checks drawn on bank accounts belonging to entities in Upstate New York, including a town government, a bank, a volunteer fire department, and several small businesses. Walter sold these stolen checks to others and understood that these checks would then be altered and forged in ways that allowed them to be successfully negotiated by people other than the checks’ intended payees. In pleading guilty, Walter admitted to causing losses totaling at least $242,159.76.
Walter also admitted that on two occasions in 2022, he unlawfully entered the USPS North Houston PDC (in Texas) and stole business checks.
Walter faces up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to 3 years of post-imprisonment supervised release, when United States District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino sentences him on June 30, 2025. Walter may also be ordered to pay restitution to his victims. A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.
USPS-OIG and USPIS investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett is prosecuting the case.