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Well within living memory, Franklin and neighboring town were places where the doors weren’t locked, where a familiar ‘milkman’ might simply take his delivery to your refrigerator if he saw that no one was home and the product might otherwise spoil.
It was also a place where a newcomer who forgot to bring money for a night’s feast at the Rome, was simply told with a smile to come back later in the week and pay the tab then...In short, Franklin was what a sociologist might call a 'high-trust' community.
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Not so much these days. The latest, according to multiple sources, is the theft of a postal key that has caused ripples all across town.
We first heard about this from a reader on Wednesday morning and later made an inquiry with the police. Thursday morning, fortuitously, the Franklin Police posted a public notice confirming the original theft and subsequent reports of checks being removed from postal collection boxes, and ‘washed’ to yield big payments to the scammers.
The problem began in early July, according to Postal Inspector Danielle Schrage, who is also one of the Public Information Officers within the Boston Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), which is the law enforcement, crime prevention, and security arm of the Postal Service.
“I can confirm that on July 11, 2024, a USPS letter carrier was robbed of their postal key while parked in their postal vehicle in the vicinity of 5 Willow St.,’ Schrage said in an email. The suspect is believed to be a dark-complexioned male, possible black or Hispanic, 5’7” to 5’8”tall, with a thin, athletic build, she explained. The individual was dressed in a black hooded sweatshirt, with a neck gaiter pulled over his face, and wearing black sweatpants.
The Franklin police stated that Franklin Police Department Detectives and the Postal Inspection Service are both currently investigating “multiple check thefts” from a number of outside blue mail drop boxes, even including the outside drop box at the Franklin Main Street Post Office.
The suspects in this case have been opening the boxes, taking all of their contents, finding checks, and washing them, according to police. This means they are changing the checks in value and who they are deposited to. They then deposit these checks resulting in people losing thousands of dollars. It also means legitimate bills and money transfers are not being made and many other pieces of personal and business correspondence may also be getting exploited.
In a Thursday telephone conversation, Franklin Police Chief Thomas Lynch said the department first heard of actual check washing incidents late in July.
As a result, residents and people using the Main Street Post Office are now advised to use caution if using the outside drop box. Using the box inside the Post Office is advised or finding alternate ways to send checks is also suggested -- easy for those with online capabilities but not for others.
Although Postal Police used to be able to help protect letter carriers and even collection boxes from crimes, they have had their hands tied since 2020, when the postal service issued a directive limiting postal police exclusively to protecting U.S Postal Service properties and leaving protection beyond to local law enforcement.
So, if you see suspicious activity around the post office, you’re encouraged to call 508-528-1212 (in Franklin) or (508) 533-3212 (in Medway) or if you believe it’s an emergency 911.
And, Schrage added, if someone believes their mail was stolen, they should report it immediately by submitting an online complaint at www.uspis.gov/report or calling the postal inspectors at 877-876-2455.
By analyzing information from the complaint, Schrage explained, postal inspectors can determine if the problem is part of a larger mail theft investigation and the information provided can assist Inspectors in identifying suspects.
As far as the original key theft and the subsequent check thefts, at this time, no suspects have been identified, according to Schrage.
