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Speedy recovery

Postal Inspector uncovers source of missing OTRs

Postal Inspectors Stephen Mathews and Doug Wilson of the Houston Division stand near a recovered OTR container.

A plant manager in Mississippi had a mystery on his hands — over-the-road (OTR) containers kept disappearing from his facility.

Postal Inspector Doug Wilson of the Houston Division was brought in to investigate.

Wilson discovered that some plant employees had seen a highway contract route (HCR) driver leave with OTRs in his truck.

Wilson met with the driver, who confessed to carting off OTRs with his son. They had cut them up and sold the high-quality aluminum to a scrap yard.

After interviewing scrap yard personnel, Wilson determined the worker had sold parts from about 1,400 OTRs over two years. When the case went to court, the judge agreed the replacement cost for each OTR was $1,913.

The employee and his son pleaded guilty on several counts, including embezzlement and theft.

In December, the employee was sentenced to five years in federal prison. His son was sentenced to three. The judge also ordered them to pay $2.7 million in restitution to the Postal Service.

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