A postal worker who admitted to stealing valuable items from the mail and selling them for cash at pawn shops has been sentenced to time served, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.
John R. Elbayeh, 44, of Albany, NY worked as a mail processing clerk at the U.S. Postal Service Processing and Distribution Center in Albany for 6 years. According to court records, Elbayeh was targeted for surveillance because of allegations that he was stealing mail.
The sting operation
Special agents from the Postal Service’s Office of the Inspector General conducted a sting operation on December 19, 2018. They arranged for an envelope containing cash and a gift card to be placed in the stream of mail that would be processed by Elbayeh. The agents watched him remove the cash from the envelope and place it in his pocket. They interviewed Elbayeh and he admitted that he had been stealing valuable items from the mail for around 2 years. He also admitted that he had stolen cash from two pieces of mail the day before.
Elbayeh took a one-way flight to Lebanon before an arrest warrant was issued. He was arrested when he reentered the U.S. around ten months later in October 2019. The following month, a federal judge ordered Elbayeh to be detained pending trial.
In December 2019, Elbayeh pled guilty to one count of theft of mail matter by a postal employee. He admitted that he earned $50,000 from selling items he had stolen from mailed packages including gold coins, gold bars, and dozens of cellphones.
The sentencing hearing
Elbayeh was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mae D’Agostino on April 17, 2020. The hearing was apparently conducted by telephone due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Elbayeh’s public defender, Lisa Peebles, asked for a sentence of time served in her sentencing submission. She said that he has already suffered from the negative consequences of his felony conviction. Elbayeh went from living the American Dream to losing his job.
Peebles argued that Elbayeh should be released due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She said that prisons have been heavily impacted by the coronavirus. Peebles pointed out that Attorney General William Barr directed the Bureau of Prisons to utilize home confinement to protect the health of at-risk inmates who are non-violent and pose minimal likelihood of recidivism. She noted that Elbayeh has no criminal history or history of violence, and he is in a high-risk category for complications if he contracts the coronavirus.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett requested a sentence of 12 months and 1 day in prison, and 3 years of supervised release in the government’s sentencing submission. Barnett pointed out that Elbayeh committed crimes over 2 years, he fled the country, and he undermined confidence in the U.S. Postal Service.
Judge D’Agostino sentenced Elbayeh to time served or 6 months in jail, 2 years of supervised release, and restitution of $868.37.
He was facing up to 5 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to 3 years of supervised release.