Teenagers vandalize mailboxes in Meadowbrook West

The teenagers' parents brought them into the Sheriff's Department.

By Amanda Wysocki

Published Feb. 3, 2009

The two teenagers responsible for stealing mail in the Meadowbrook West subdivision were turned into the Boone County Sheriff's Department for their actions.

Two 15-year-olds and their parents came to the sheriff's department Friday night about the Meadowbrook West vandalism, Maj. Tom Reddin said. The two teenagers had some of the stolen mail with them, but not all of it has been recovered.

"The parents essentially turned in their sons for their involvement in the problems with Meadowbrook West," Reddin said. "They were referred to the proper juvenile authorities."

The suspects did not target a specific type of mail in their vandalism.

A number of mailboxes in the subdivision were vandalized last week.

"The entire subdivision seems to have been affected," Reddin said. "So many victims were involved in this. The mail was strewn about the streets and there was vandalism to many of the mailboxes."

The total number of victims has not yet been determined as some residents might not be aware their mail was taken, Reddin said.

Until the residents realize which items were mailed and then stolen during the incident, the number of victims cannot be determined.

Meadowbrook West is located west of Stadium Boulevard and north of Nifong Boulevard. The affected streets include Hartford Road, Baxter Court, Hastings Court, Atlas Court, Grandview Circle, Kendallwood Road, Knox Drive and Salem Drive.

There have been a number of mail thefts around the country lately. Thieves primarily target credit card bills in order to steal identities, though that does not seem to be the case in the Meadowbrook West situation, Reddin said.

Although stealing mail is a felony, the federal government is not involved in this investigation, Reddin said. The juvenile authorities have gone forth with the proceedings against the teens.