NY Woman Sentenced For Bribing NJ Mail Carriers to Steal Keys

A New York woman now knows her fate for her role in a scheme to bribe mail carriers in New Jersey to steal postal arrow keys in order to unlock mail receptacles and to use stolen items from the mail to obtain funds fraudulently from banks.

28-year-old Halimatou Ndiaye of the Bronx had pleaded guilty to one count of bribery of U.S. Postal Service mail carriers and one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

This past Tuesday, Ndiaye was sentenced to 12 months and one day behind bars.

Federal authorities say Ndiaye schemed to bribe mail carriers in East Orange and Newark by offering them cash, typically $5,000, in exchange for the mail carriers giving her and another individual a postal arrow key, which could be used to access a variety of mail receptacles.

Ndiaye and others sought those keys so they could steal mail.

From June to July 2021, Ndiaye and the others drove to spots in those two cities where they stopped mail carriers and handed them a note indicating they would give them $5,000 in exchange for an arrow key.

From January 2021 to July 2021, Ndiaye conspired with others to obtain funds fraudulently from banks by using stolen checks and bank cards to draw funds from bank accounts linked to the stolen items and using the identification of others to fraudulently obtain funds.

In addition to the prison term, Ndiaye was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and she was ordered to pay restitution of $6,361.