Lake Worth Police have arrested two men allegedly caught in the act of mail theft according to Lake Worth Chief of Police J.T. Manoushagian’s Twitter account.
The two men are believed to be connected to large-scale thefts of mail across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, according to police.
“We would like to thank the US Postal Inspection Service for their partnership and for working with us to preserve the holiday spirit in Lake Worth and all of North Texas,” Lake Worth Police said in a statement.
The suspects have been identified as Albert Pierre Cannon, 29, of DeSoto, and Terrell Antone Sauls, 28, of San Diego. The two men were caught by undercover officers assigned to watch mailboxes at the Lake Worth Post Office, police said.
Both men were wearing ski masks when they pulled up to the mailboxes, according to Lake Worth Police.
When officers surrounded the suspects’ vehicle, both men reportedly tried to flee the scene on foot but were apprehended by police.
The department assigned undercover officers to the post office after discovering mail in Fort Worth had been stolen. There had been a string of mail thefts across the DFW metroplex, and officers received a tip from U.S. Postal Inspectors on Tuesday.
“This multi-month, multi-million-dollar investigation culminated today when the suspects were caught in the act, right here in LW!” said Manoushagian in the release.
One Twitter user asked the chief why a K-9 was used.
Manoushagian replied, “We used our K-9 unit to apprehend one suspect and to conduct an article search for items thrown by the suspect during the foot pursuit.”
Former Deputy Police Chief of the Arlington Police Department and current White Settlement Chief of Police and Director of Public Safety Christopher Cook commented on the Twitter thread.
“Great job Chief. Hopefully, same crew that was responsible for thefts in White Settlement,” Cook expressed.
Theft of a single piece of mail can result in five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 according to Paul Eckert of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Fort Worth Division, speaking to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The Dallas Express reached out to the Lake Worth Police Department for comment and additional information but had not received a response at the time of publication.
