Levette J. Douglas, Mail Fraud, Ohio 2013

TOLEDO, OH – In a brazen scheme, Levette J. Douglas, 35, of Toledo, Ohio, defrauded the U.S. Postal Service out of over $164,000 through the submission of false insurance claims. Douglas, who was part of a conspiracy to commit mail fraud, pleaded guilty to the charge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on January 10, 2014.

As part of the plea agreement, Douglas agreed to $164,859 in criminal forfeiture and restitution. Under voluntary federal sentencing guidelines, she faces between 21 and 27 months in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for January 16, 2014, before the Honorable Rudolph Contreras.

The scheme, which lasted from April 2010 to July 2013, involved Douglas and her co-conspirators submitting false claims to the Postal Service for allegedly damaged or lost parcels. They purchased insurance for approximately 325 parcels that were sent through the mail and later falsely claimed that the parcels were damaged or lost.

In one instance, Douglas submitted a false affidavit purporting to be from a postal letter carrier, M.M., stating that she had not delivered any parcels to the recipient for several months. However, the affiant’s phone number was actually Douglas’s phone number, and the parcel in question was delivered and signed for by the recipient.

Douglas also mailed forged internal postal forms to the Postal Service’s accounting department, purporting to be from Postal Service employees verifying the false claims. The Postal Service paid out $164,859 based on these false claims.

U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Special Agent in Charge Paul L. Bowman commended the investigative work of Special Agent Jason Manning of the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, as well as the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Postal Service.

Douglas’s guilty plea marks a significant victory for the U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in their efforts to combat mail fraud and protect the integrity of the postal system.

Related Federal Cases