A thief in Snohomish County went to extreme measures to rip off a Bothell couple -- twice.
A lot has changed in the last two years for Andy and Nicole Stevens — a new job, a new car and most importantly a new baby.
But one thing hasn’t changed.
“I didn’t actually think anybody would be able to get that off. I used some pretty thick bolts when I installed it,” Andy told us, standing next to the wooden post where his mailbox used to be.
For the second time in two years, the Stevenses have been victims of mail theft, and it’s hard to determine which incident was more egregious.
The first was the day they returned from their honeymoon.
“Someone pulled up, got all of our wedding gifts out of our mailbox.
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You could just see it on camera — this guy with armfuls of gifts and card. It was pretty heartbreaking,” Andy remembered.
But that mailbox wasn’t locked, so Andy immediately replaced it with one that was, and last week a thief used a crowbar to take the entire mailbox.
A neighbors’ surveillance camera caught the crime.
“This guy just brazenly, 4 in the morning, keeps his lights on, engine running — looks like he tries to pry the neighbor’s off first,” Andy explained, walking us through the video.
We called the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office; mail theft is a daily occurrence, but this is on the unusual side.
They have had other reports of mailboxes being ripped right out of the ground, but they are usually mailbox trees for a subdivision or apartment complex.
“Now we’re considering a P.O. box,” Andy said.
The Stevenses are at a loss — but so is the thief.
Another thing that’s changed?
They now have their packages delivered to work, and they clean out their mailbox every day.
“He got an empty mailbox — worthless to him, one hundred bucks for us,” Andy concluded.