Postal worker convicted
MIDLAND A U.S. Postal Service worker in Midland was convicted Tuesday of stealing three gift cards from the mail in 2008 and 2009. Myung Ashley, 53, could face up to 10 years in prison at a sentencing hearing next month, but she also is eligible for probation.
The jury quickly concluded that Ashley took two Academy Sports gift cards in December 2008 from a Christmas card addressed to a Monahans resident. Ashley also was found guilty of stealing a third Academy gift card in June 2009 from a greeting card addressed to a Midland residence.
Investigators linked Ashley to the stolen cards after they were used at the Academy Sports in Midland. Ashley did not take the witness stand during the two-day trial, but her supervisor testified on her behalf.
Ashley’s defense attorney, Thomas S. Morgan of Midland, pointed out that Ashley’s fingerprints were not found on the cards. Ashley’s husband testified that he had gotten at least one of the gift cards from an acquaintance. But the jury did not believe his testimony, according to one juror, because Ashley and her husband had previously refused to cooperate with investigators.
"That was not reasonable doubt," the juror said, adding that none of the jurors disputed Ashley’s guilt.
Morgan said this wasn't the end.
"I am disappointed but I am not discouraged," Morgan said. "I very much look forward to round two in the fifth circuit court of appeal in New Orleans."
Ashley is the second postal worker in Midland this year to be convicted of stealing mail. In January, Walter Bryson, a former letter carrier, pleaded guilty to stealing several ATM debit cards from his deliveries. Bryson was sentenced to nine months in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $6,000 in restitution.
The U.S. Postal Service does not keep local statistics tracking mail theft, but prosecutors and post office officials say the cases of Bryson and Ashley are the exception rather than the norm.
"When you’re talking about 600,000-plus employees, it’s pretty much a microcosm of regular society," said Dan Mihalko, a spokesman for the USPS Office of the Inspector General, the agency that investigates employee mail theft. "Whatever you have going on in regular society, you’re going to have some of it in the postal service."
Mihalko said only "a relatively small number" of post office employees steal mail.
"Most post office employees, particularly in this economy, recognize that they have a pretty good job, and they’re not going to put it on the line by stealing a $25 gift card."
