Two Riverside County brothers pleaded guilty to stealing over $2.3 million from the U.S. Postal Service through a mail scam.
The two brothers were identified as Anwer Fareed Alam, 35, and Yousofzay Fahim Alam, 31, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
From October 2016 to May 2019, authorities said the brothers purchased packages and postages from USPS that included the option for $100 in insurance for lost or damaged parcel contents.
Anwer wrapped packages that were either empty or contained items of little value and shipped them through priority mail to fake recipients at fake addresses, officials said.
Yousofzay then submitted false insurance claims through the USPS website saying the packages he sent were lost or damaged in transit. He claimed the packages contained items of higher value than they actually did. He also included false invoices and pictures of the alleged items that were never inside the sent packages, according to court documents.
The brothers used aliases and fake business names to hide the number of insurance claims they submitted. They were issued checks that covered the alleged losses up to $100 in value plus the cost of shipping.
Through this method, they were able to fraudulently claim at least $2,367,033, according to prosecutors.
The checks were sent to various addresses in Temecula including their home addresses, business addresses, and around 15 different post office boxes at two different post office locations.
The brothers then deposited the USPS checks into their bank accounts.
Both men have pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 1. If convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison.