Crumpsall postman 'too lazy' to deliver almost 75,000 letter

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Crumpsall postman 'too lazy' to deliver almost 75,000 letters and parcels jailed

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchesterevening ... els-jailed" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A thieving postman who "acted like a magpie" by hoarding nearly 75,000 letters and parcels in his garden shed has been jailed.

Dad-of-two John Hodson, 33, of Chudleigh Road, Crumpsall, said he had been too lazy to deliver 70,000 items of junk mail and 4,376 addressed packages.

But debt-ridden Hodson also stole gift cards, DVDs and cash from the mail he was supposed to be delivering.

Hodson, who said he had debts of £40,000 and had been declared bankrupt, was jailed for nine months at Bolton Crown Court.

He was caught after two tracking devices were put in his daily round in a sting by Royal Mail investigators.

One of the packages contained a £30 voucher. Two days later Hodson was caught on CCTV using it to buy a pair of tracksuit bottoms at a JD Sports shop in Leeds. The test packages were later found in his car.

Investigators found £140 in cash in Hodson's wallet, and a search of his house revealed 269 greeting type packages and a haul of 65 DVDs.

He admitted intentionally delaying mail between November 2006 and April this year and one charge of theft after stealing the contents of the mail since February last year.

Prosecutor Brian McKenna told the court how Hodson was put under surveillance after 58 greeting cards went missing in the Prestwich area.

In interviews he confessed to stealing items for around a year and estimated he had taken between £400 and £600 to help pay off his debts.

He said he was extremely remorseful for his actions.

Sentencing judge Peter Davies told Hodson he had acted like a magpie hoarding the items at his home.

He said: "The public are entitled to expect a reliable, efficient and trustworthy post service.

"If postmen are believed to steal then that trust goes.

"Occasionally somebody comes along and lets the public down and that is what you did."

When Hodson's defence barrister Paul Lamb told the court there was no answer for not delivering the junk mail, Judge Davies added: "You acted life a magpie effectively."

Hodson was sentenced to nine months in prison for theft and three months for not delivering the mail, to run concurrently

[TrueBlueTerrier]

ITV News report on case with video. Shows scale of hoard. http://www.itv.com/news/granada/update/ ... own-court/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[stokes11eg]

AND_ another one bites the dust.

[TeeferTiger]

Glad he's been caught, but sad that he had to drag the image of honest posties through the mud first

[El-Bandito]

He admitted intentionally delaying mail between November 2006 and April this year!!!!!!!!!
Can anyone explain to me why it took so long to put a stop to this thief?