By By Suzanne Digmon
Thanks to the efforts of a diligent mail carrier, the Atmore Post Office and the Atmore Police Department, suspects were recently apprehended in a mail theft investigation.
"We had a city carrier who noticed someone was frequently nearby," Postmaster Mitchell Soutullo said Thursday. The carrier had seen a particular vehicle that seemed to be close by while the carrier was on route.
A customer on the route asked her carrier about a check she was supposed to have received in the mail. The carrier told the customer that the check had been placed in her mailbox, but when the customer checked her mail, the check was not there.
The police were contacted and the situation explained to them. They then began to look for the suspicious vehicle that the carrier had noticed close by as the route was followed.
When the suspects were apprehended by Atmore Police, the stolen mail was in their possession.
"We care a lot about our customers and our carriers," Soutullo said.
Since holidays are busy for the postal service, accommodations have been made to help the customers get their postal needs met.
The Atmore Post Office will be open late Thursday, beginning a week before Christmas. Rather than closing at 11:30 a.m., as usual, customers may come in until 3:30 p.m. that day. "This is to help our customers during the holiday season." The post office will be open regular hours on Wednesday, Dec. 24, Christmas Eve, as well.