After two weeks of investigations, the Quincy and Portola mail thieves have been caught.
Monday, the Plumas Sheriff’s Office was able to get a search warrant for a home on Lawrence Street in Quincy based on community tips and investigations by deputies that included credit card fraud.
In their search of the home belonging to Jessica Churchill and Justin Laustrup, deputies found thousands of pieces of mail from all over, ranging from Quincy, Sacramento, Oroville, Santa Rosa, and Reno. The duo was stealing mail containing new credit cards and attempting to use them in addition to forging multiple personal checks waiting to be cashed. That was not all deputies found; they also located a large amount of Meth and items used to sell the drug. Churchill and Laustrup were arrested for mail theft, possession of the stolen property, possession of credit cards not of their own with an intent to use them, and possession of a controlled substance for sale. They are booked into the Plumas County Correctional Center.
If you believe you have been a victim of mail theft, you are asked to contact the US postal service and sheriff’s office as they sort through the mail and identify victims. Several ballots were also found in the mounds of mail. If you have not received yours, contact the elections office to request a new one.
Additionally, you can help the sheriff’s office if you recognize or have video surveillance of the thieves driving around in a 2007 2-door, dark blue Toyota Scion; you can call 283-6300 if you have any footage to provide.
