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A former US Postal worker was indicted on federal charges this week after being accused of stealing stimulus checks from the mail last year.
Thirty-three-year-old Olivia Bryant was charged with three counts of theft from the mail, a statement from the US Department of Justice released Tuesday (April 12) states. Bryant is accused of stealing three pieces of mail that all contained government-issued checks in March 2021 while on her route in Chicago.
Bryant pleaded not guilty to the charges during an arraignment hearing in federal court on Monday (April 11). The former postal worker is due back in court on May 13 for a status hearing before US District Judge Robert Blakey.
Each count Bryant faces carries a maximum sentence of five years. If convicted, the DOJ says Bryant will have to receive a "reasonable sentence" as laid out in the US Sentencing Guidelines.
The IRS issued three rounds of stimulus checks to Americans between 2020 and 2021 amid the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. During his State of the Union address this year, President Joe Biden announced the launch of a new task force inside the DOJ to track down those who fraudulently applied for COVID-19 money intended for small businesses.
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