Police are investigating a report of a mailbox break-in from a neighborhood in the Renton Highlands.
The thefts happened Thursday morning near Northeast 4th Street and Nile Avenue Northeast.
“Both mailboxes were wide open, and there was damage to the outgoing mail slots,” said Richard Hull, one of the neighbors whose mail was stolen. “Just from the extent of the damage, and knowing how quickly and easily the mailbox was manipulated, would tell me they were in and out of here in two minutes.”
Renton police responded and took a report from affected neighbors. The agency warned people to be on alert for suspicious activity near mailboxes.
“With the holidays around the corner, we are going to see more people looking to steal mail as well as packages,” said Renton police spokesperson Brooke Lamothe. “We are asking people to be vigilant in reporting suspicious activity, and sign up for informed delivery so they can see what’s coming in the mail that day.”
Last year, Renton police arrested a woman who had 46 pieces of mail from 17 different addresses. Hull, the victim, was able to fix the damage to the mailbox and get it back in working order.
“Whereas the other neighbors around here were out a lot of money and three weeks where they had to drive to the post office and get their mail,” he said. “Hopefully, they get caught; that would be the best thing.”
The two-minute estimated timeframe demonstrates how quickly experienced mail thieves operate, using specialized tools to compromise mailboxes before neighbors or passersby notice suspicious activity during morning hours when many residents are preparing for work.
The damage to outgoing mail slots indicates thieves targeted mail being sent out rather than just incoming deliveries, suggesting they seek checks, credit card payments, or sensitive documents that victims place in mailboxes for postal pickup.
The holiday timing warning from Renton police reflects national patterns where mail and package theft spikes between Thanksgiving and New Year’s as criminals exploit increased shopping volumes and gift deliveries creating more opportunities.
Informed Delivery, the free USPS service Lamothe recommended, sends subscribers daily emails showing scanned images of incoming mail, allowing recipients to detect theft immediately rather than discovering missing items days or weeks later.
The 2024 arrest of a woman with 46 pieces of mail from 17 addresses demonstrates how mail thieves accumulate stolen items from multiple locations, often seeking financial documents, gift cards, or personal information for identity theft rather than physical merchandise.
The three-week period neighbors had to retrieve mail from the post office represents significant inconvenience beyond the theft itself, as damaged community mailboxes require repair or replacement before USPS will resume delivery to the affected cluster boxes.
Richard Hull’s ability to repair the mailbox himself saved time compared to neighbors awaiting official replacements, though USPS policies typically require approved repairs or replacements meeting security standards before carriers resume service.
The Renton Highlands location places the thefts in a middle-class residential area where cluster mailboxes serve multiple homes, creating attractive targets for thieves who can access numerous mailboxes simultaneously by compromising a single lock system.
The outgoing mail slot damage suggests thieves used pry bars or similar tools to force open compartments, methods that leave visible evidence but allow quick access before detection, a trade-off criminals calculate when operating in daylight hours.
The police spokesperson’s emphasis on reporting suspicious activity acknowledges that mail theft prevention depends heavily on community vigilance, as patrol resources cannot monitor every mailbox cluster during the brief windows when thieves strike.
