Plano mail theft scandal affects 80, probes focus on post office

More than 80 Plano residents had mail stolen since February, and the losses included checks that criminals washed and rewrote for tens of thousands of dollars. The center of the case was the U.S. Post Office on W. Parker Road, where victims and investigators suspected the thefts were being carried out from inside the system.

CBS News Texas reported 72 police reports in the past three months alone tied to mailed checks that were stolen and altered. Jim Frankenfield said 15 of his letters were taken and three checks were washed for large amounts, while Patty Van Allen said, "Something's going on inside the post office." For families who trusted a routine trip to mail bills, the fallout has stretched far beyond a missing envelope and into bank disputes, account monitoring and weeks of fraud cleanup.

Phil Carter told WFAA that checks he and his wife mailed in February from two Plano post offices came back altered, including at least two changed to "Pay To The Order of Holly Wilson." The Carters estimated that more than six checks totaling over $7,000 were missing or altered. Their mailings were dropped at the Plano locations on W. Parker Road and Coit Road, a detail that helped point investigators toward a pattern, not an isolated mistake.

The broader case grew out of burglaries at the Plano Main Post Office at 1200 Jupiter Road and the Plano Wildcat Post Office at 2901 W. Parker Road on April 5 and April 6, 2025. Officials said suspects used access codes to get into secured postal areas without forcing entry, stole 16 U.S. Postal Service arrow keys and later had the keys and other property recovered. By July 10, 2025, Plano police said six people had been arrested in the mail theft ring, including Randy Brown, Asia Jackson, Mark Hughes, Glenn Villas, Sanjay Gangar and Bryan Arellano.

Investigators also traced a stolen gas card to a black Dodge Journey in Irving, then served a search warrant at a nearby motel where nine arrow keys and other stolen property were recovered. Police later said Gangar was seen stealing mail from multiple complexes, was found overdosing on fentanyl in a Costco parking lot and was taken into custody after treatment. Officers also said his vehicle contained a stolen arrow key, stolen mail, identification cards, fentanyl and a Glock pistol.

The Postal Service’s inspector general has warned that internal mail theft remains a nationwide problem, citing gaps that include no national policy restricting personal belongings on the workroom floor, supervisor and manager vacancies, and no dedicated periodic mail-theft awareness training. In April 2026, U.S. Postal Inspector Sean Smith said the agency was aware of the complaints and was investigating them as an active federal case. For Plano residents who mailed checks through the city’s postal network, the warning is simple: look closely at every statement, every payee line and every envelope that never arrives.