Two brothers have been charged after an investigation into mail theft and identity theft in Quincy, Massachusetts, that officials say is part of a wider-reaching criminal network.
Qiangqiang Chen and Liuliu Chen, brothers in their 30s, were arrested on accusations of mail larceny and identity theft after investigators executed a search warrant and recovered around $200,00 in checks, as well as stolen mail, credit cards and other identity documents from their home.
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WATCH HEREInvestigators believe they are linked to multiple crimes in the city.
“The post office was saying put in for informed delivery so you know when your mail is getting there and they were getting notifications that the mail was getting delivered, but then they were not getting any mail," explained Lt. Detective Stephen O'Donoghue of the Quincy Police Department.
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SIGN UP Quincy police said the investigation picked up after two reports of credit card fraud of hundreds of dollars at local businesses. Investigators said the suspects in the cases looked very alike. Then, there was a report of mail being stolen from homes on Quarry Street.
“And that was where I said OK...the same person is in all three videos, so who is this person?” O'Donoghue said.
After that, a report of a vehicle stolen from Hertz led investigators to an address in Quincy., which led to the warrant.
Officials said they anticipate more charges and potentially more people being arrested in the case, describing it as a "vast criminal network."
The department is working with United States Postal Inspection Service and the Norfolk District
Attorney’s Office on this case.
Police remind residents to be vigilant of potential fraud or identity theft. If you think you have been a victim, report it to local police and your financial institutions. The Federal Trade Commission has an Identity Theft
Hotline available at 1-877-IDTHEFT (1-877-438-4338). Issues can also be reported to the credit reporting agencies:
- Equifax: (800) 525-6285
- Experian: (800)-397-3742
- Trans Union: (800) 680-7289
Check washing, the act of stealing checks and then using the information on them to create fraudulent ones, is a common motivation for mail theft, according to USPS, which says it recovered around $1 billion in fake checks and money orders a year.
Both suspects were arraigned on April 4.
