A federal jury found Devin Ryan Maresca (33, Newcastle, PA) guilty of 10 counts of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft on Thursday, according to prosecutors.
A November 2022 indictment alleged that between approximately May 2018 through July 2022, the defendant purchased USPS Priority Mail postage that included $50 in insurance for the lost or damaged contents of a shipment parcel.
“It was further part of the scheme and artifice to defraud that the defendant would and did submit and cause the submission of false and fraudulent claims through the USPS Customer Inquiry and Response System, certifying that contents of packages that he mailed were damaged,” the indictment alleged.
On August 24, 2023, a jury found the defendant guilty, according to prosecutors. An excerpt of the government’s press release with details follows:
“According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, while living in Cape Coral, Maresca filed more than 2,200 fraudulent indemnity claims to the United States Postal Service (USPS) claiming that Priority Mail packages that he had mailed or received were damaged. Maresca fraudulently used his mother, father, and brother’s names to submit most of the claims. Further, Maresca forged his family members’ signatures on the backs of USPS claims checks to deposit them into a bank account he controlled. The checks were mailed to mailboxes that Maresca had set up at UPS and Pak-Mail locations in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, and Punta Gorda.
“Maresca’s fraud scheme caused the USPS to issue more than $100,000 in claims checks. IP address, bank, and email records, along with USPS data, linked Maresca to the fraudulent claims. In December 2021, a United States Postal Inspector and USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) Special Agent interviewed Maresca at his home in Newcastle, PA. During the interview, Maresca admitted to submitting more than 2,200 fraudulent claims and forging his family members’ signatures on USPS indemnity checks.”
The defendant faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for each mail fraud count and a minimum of two years in federal prison on the aggravated identity theft count, according to the release on Justice.gov.
I find it amazing that the Post Office actually paid off on the claims. Usually they deny them for reasons only known to themselves.
Agreed. USPS always does an “investigation” where they find in their favor. I would never use their insurance. I haven’t had a claim against UPS ever when I add insurance.
I can’t believe anyone would be stupid enough to try to cash in on thousands of claims. For pity’s sake, USPS is photographing and weighing individual packages at this point, whatever was in the fool’s mind that he thought he could get away with so many claims, especially with actual money involved?
@Tinysaurs My experience is exactly the opposite of yours. My problem with UPS is that probably 3 out of 5 packages seem to arrive damaged and only careful original packing saves the contents. It’s the sorting facilities causing damage, the drivers are wonderful. UPS is in the business to make a profit and actively fights claims. Not gossip: A personal friend of mine filed a five-figure lawsuit because one of the forklift drivers drove his forklift forks right through the middle of a professionally made wooden crate, in which they shipped a $14K carousel horse. Friend told me that UPS denied the insurance, claiming “poor packing.”
@GetAGrip – I’ve shipped since 1998 and have had to file maybe 3 total USPS insurance claims, all of which were honored and I was reimbursed. The last one (2 years ago) was more difficult as it was for a lost package (too long of a story for here) and it took two tries but i won and they paid up. That said, it’s way more difficult now with the SHIPPER having to file, instead of either party.
I do pack as defensively as possible, and because of essentially no losses using USPS, I began to “self” insure, NOT buying insurance unless it was a truly high value item. I’ve done this for so long, saving hundreds of dollars, I can reimburse a customer for just about any purchase and still be ahead moneywise in the long run.
A USPS problem increasingly seems to be a huge gap between local workers and “management” so I have done my best to cultivate the local folks working for BOTH USPS and UPS. They are absolutely terrific and right there trying to help if I might need it.
i find it hard to believe USPS doesn’t have a trigger point, where they suspect a shipper is abusing their claims or doesnt know how to pack his goods. I know Fed Ex does/did and its less than 5- complaints….If the USPS had a red flag, they would have caught the abuser themselves way before 2000 claims….which was about 2 a day in this case. (ok divide by 4, he used 4 names- though more than 1 with same last name and city)