Mailboxes at Duluth apartment targeted by thieves... again
DULUTH, Ga. - A large new surveillance system sits outside the MAA Prescott apartment complex in Duluth, weeks after Gwinnett County police started investigating stolen mail there.
Neighbors said the cameras ease their minds, but they want the mail system inside their gated community.
Important documents come in the mail, especially during a pandemic.
That's why dented in and gutted mailboxes concern neighbors at the apartments on Centerview Drive.
Neighbors said thieves have targeted the mailboxes before, at least once in November and again the first week of the year.
At the time, the metal boxes were ripped open, worrying neighbors, as stimulus checks had just been sent, and many expected they'd arrive in the mail.
Weeks later, the apartment confirms those mailboxes are blighted again.
"I was so mad," a man who chose not to show his face on camera said.
He said he's lived in the complex for about seven years.
"One of my neighbors checked on my mail. The door was open," he said.
FOX 5 spoke to this same man when thieves stole Christmas cards from his box around the New Year.
"The next day they fixed my mailbox and I got two new keys," he said.
He said the apartment quickly deals with the damage, but that doesn't stop criminals from targeting the space. He said the most recent incident could have happened Sunday night or early Monday morning.
"They're trying their best to fix the mailbox, but during that time someone is breaking the mailboxes," he said.
He said the mailboxes aren't protected by a gate, like the rest of the community, and are an easy target for anyone driving by.
The neighbor said he contacted the IRS because he still hasn't received his stimulus check in the mail.
The Internal Revenue Service said it could take weeks for checks to arrive but the warped mailboxes and reported stolen items don't ease this man's mind.
He said he appreciates the new surveillance system but wants property management to do more.
In a statement, Mary Lou Scruggs with MAA Prescott apartments tells FOX 5:
"MAA Prescott contracted with a vendor to provide a surveillance system in front of the mail area as well as the parking lot while a new camera system for the mail system was ordered and installed. All new mailboxes have been ordered for the mail station and we await shipment from the manufacturer."
The frustrated resident said that's not enough, so he's forwarding his mail elsewhere.
"I got a P.O. Box. [I] did it yesterday," he said.
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