Investigators in Central Ohio are trying to figure out who has been going through and stealing mail from dozens of mailboxes.
It’s happened in a number of counties.
"We chose to move to the country so we wouldn't have to deal with crime, and now here it is, you know, right in our mailbox," said Marilyn Hacquard.
Hacquard says something didn’t seen right when she found the mailbox outside her home in Rockbridge in Hocking County empty last Saturday.
The next day, mail was left at her home by the sheriff's office.
Someone had found it along with others' mail on the side of the road.
Some, including her niece’s wedding invitation, had been opened.
She suspects someone was looking for money.
"There are worse things in life, I’m sure, but, you know, you feel violated. It's a violation when someone steals your mail and looks at your personal pieces of mail," said Hacquard.
Her mailbox is one of a dozen to be hit in Hocking County, and there have been similar cases of mail theft recently in Fairfield, Pickaway, Pike, Fayette and Ross counties.
Chillicothe police named Margaret Fearnow and Kelly Downing (a.k.a. Kelly Jamhour) as persons of interest, claiming they've altered stolen checks and cashed them.
"They're finding mailboxes with the flags up, and they're taking outgoing mail, and they're searching for checks," said Officer Bud Lytle with the Chillicothe police.
Police say the suspects have cashed the checks at a number of banks throughout Chillicothe in hopes of covering their tracks.
Police say they have checks that Fearnow has signed and the persons of interest may be responsible for going through Hacquard's mail as well.
"My neighbors have been calling, 'Did you get your mail? Did you want me to get your mail?' We can't continue that so we're going to have to take action in getting a locked box,” says Hacquard.
According to Chillicothe police, if you believe you have had a check stolen, first call the payee. If they haven't received it when they should have, call the bank and put a stop on the check. Next, call police.
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