BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. – An EMS rig is designed to transport people, not a United States Postal Service mail collection box.
Ryan Baugh and Jacob Sandrock are accused of stealing a USPS collection box in Oakland County on April 29, 2024, near an office building on South Telegraph Road north of West Square Lake Road.
In the criminal complaint filed Tuesday (July 16) in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, the Bloomfield Hills Postmaster reported the collection box was missing on April 30.
The complaint says that on May 2, a postal technician received a call from an individual, later identified as Baugh, asking if he could keep the collection box that he found next to a dumpster.
According to the complaint, Baugh wanted to use it for personal or decorative purposes. The technician responded by saying, “No.”
Later that day, a STAR EMS manager called the postal technician and said he didn’t believe his employees took the collection box but were instead told by the Postal Inspection Service that they could keep it.
“The ambulance’s in-vehicle video camera showed Sandrock and Baugh using a STAR EMS stretcher to load the collection box into the back of an ambulance,” the complaint states.
The complaint also alleges Baugh stating that if he and Sandrock get an emergency call, they will have to dispose of the USPS collection box.
During an interview with postal inspectors, investigators said Baugh thought he could refurbish it for a drop box for medical records.
According to the complaint, Sandrock described it in hindsight as “stupid” in his interview with postal inspectors.
Baugh and Sandrock are charged with theft of government property and obstruction of mail. Obstructing mail carries a maximum penalty of six months imprisonment.
A charge of theft of government property carries a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment. Both charges may result in a fine as prescribed by the court.
According to STAR EMS officials, the two employees voluntarily separated from the company days after the incident. They said they take matters like this seriously.
Andrew Brandsasse, the postal inspector team leader for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service issued a statement to Local 4.
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is the federal law enforcement agency charged with securing the Postal Service’s employees, assets, and infrastructure and enforcing laws designed to protect the nation’s mail system. We are actively investigating the theft of a USPS collection box in April 2024, but to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation, I cannot provide additional details beyond what is publicly available. If the public has information about this or any other crime involving the U.S. Mail, we urge them to report it online at www.uspis.gov or by phone at 877-876-2455.”
Andrew Brandsasse, postal inspector team leader for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service