Former Pittsburgh Postal Officer Pleads Guilty to Mail Theft and Sale of Over $6 Million in Checks

A former human resource officer for the U.S. Postal Service in Pittsburgh, Ahmad Omar Shareef, has pleaded guilty to mail theft and selling checks meant for local businesses, as U.S. Attorney Eric G. Olshan revealed yesterday. Shareef faced his judgment in the chambers of United States District Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand on four counts, indicating a betrayal of the trust inherent in his postal service position. According to the

Department of Justice

, the 35-year-old Monroeville resident intercepted and pilfered checks from October 2023 to April 2024, exploiting a position meant to safeguard personal correspondences.

The inquiry unfolded the extent of Shareef’s involvement, with the court learning that he had lifted over 450 checks totaling more than $6 million from mail destined for various Pittsburgh businesses. An encrypted messaging app served as a marketplace where Shareef transferred the checks to buyers outside the city. It’s been determined that nearly $250,000 of this amount was fraudulently negotiated. In a turn of events that disclosed the economics of corruption, the former postal worker admitted to pocketing an estimated $20,000 from this illicit enterprise.

Sentencing for Shareef has been set for March 25, 2025. The possibility of up to 20 years in prison and fines reaching $1 million will determine the actual sentence. The gravity of the charges and Shareef’s previous criminal record, if present, will weigh in the balance. This casting of justice legally binds to the dictates of the federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The investigation that led to Shareef’s accountability was a combined effort by the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General and the Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory C. Melucci led the prosecution.

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