A Massachusetts man says a thief posed as an Amazon driver in an effort to avoid stealing a package that had been delivered to his home. Matt Elsevier, of Gardner, shared home security video with NewsCenter 5 that shows a man dressed in an Amazon. Vest took a package off Elsevier’s front porch mid-afternoon last month. “He came in carrying a package with his phone. You know, he made it look (legitimate) that he was actually going to leave a package.” Elsevier said Wednesday. “As soon as I saw the footage, I called the police and filed a report. I sent them all the security footage I had.” Lt. Matt Arsenault said Elsevier’s home was one of several hit by package thieves that day, and it’s one of many package thefts the Gardner Police Department has investigated over the past two months. “I think maybe there’s someone alerting them to that: ‘Hey, a cell phone might be delivered to this address,’ and then they head there,” Arsenault said. “We’ve had three or four of them that were cell phone specific, and then others, they seem to be kind of random, maybe just a package left on the front porch and it was visible from the streets,” Arsenault told Gardner. Police are now encouraging residents to hand in mobile phones to their provider’s store. Those expecting a value package from Amazon should try to be home for delivery or choose the option to pick it up at a nearby Amazon counter or locker, Arsenault said. While package thieves are brazen and don’t seem to care about being caught on camera, Arsenault said the footage helps police track down porch pirates, as do eyewitness accounts. “If someone sees something suspicious. The license plates are obviously huge: makes and models of vehicles; clothing, male or female, things like that,” Arsenault said. Amazon customers who believe a package has been stolen should check the tracking number to make sure the package was actually delivered. If the package was finally delivered, customers should contact Amazon and file a police report. Related story:
GARDNER, Massachusetts—
A Massachusetts man says a thief posed as an Amazon driver in an effort to avoid stealing a package that had been delivered to his home.
Matt Elsevier, of Gardner, shared home security video with NewsCenter 5 showing a man wearing an Amazon vest taking a package from Elsevier’s front porch in the middle of the afternoon last month.
“He came in carrying a package with his phone. You know, he made it look (legitimate) that he was actually going to drop off a package,” Elsevier said Wednesday. “As soon as I saw the footage, I called the police and filed a report. I sent them all the security footage I had.”
Gardner Police Det. Lt. Matt Arsenault said Elsevier’s home was one of several hit by package thieves that day, and it’s one of many package thefts the Gardner Police Department has investigated over the past two months.
“I think maybe someone tipped them off, ‘Hey, they might get a cell phone delivered to this address,’ and then they head there,” Arsenault said. “We’ve had three or four of them that were specific to cell phones, and then others, they seem to be kind of random, maybe just a package left on the front porch and it was visible from the streets.”
Arsenault said Gardner police are now encouraging residents to turn in cell phones to their carrier’s store. Those expecting a value package from Amazon should try to be home for delivery or choose the option to pick it up at a nearby Amazon counter or locker, Arsenault said.
While package thieves are brazen and don’t seem to mind being caught on camera, Arsenault said the footage helps police track down porch pirates, as do eyewitness accounts.
“If someone sees something suspicious, license plates are obviously huge, makes and models of vehicles, clothing, male or female, things like that,” Arsenault said.
Amazon customers who believe a package has been stolen should check the tracking number to make sure the package was actually delivered. If the package was finally delivered, customers should contact Amazon and file a police report.
Related story:
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