WeHo West Residents Association Reports Mailbox Thieves on Ashcroft Avenue

A post on the West Hollywood Residents Association Facebook page reports on mailbox thieves that were caught on video trying to break into mailboxes on 8900th block of Ashcroft Avenue, this past Friday, March 26, 2021.

“At 4:27 this morning a vehicle with 3 active participants where seen on video trying to break into mailboxes on the 8900 block of Ashcroft,” reads the post. “The thieves appear to have been driving a late model BMW with bike rack or rear spoiler. This brazen mailbox vandalism is new to us. Typically we’ve heard about mail being snatched from mailboxes without locks. But now these late night thieves are trying to pry open locked mailboxes using pliers like the one left behind.”

Photos show a person trying to break-in to a mailbox late a night, a set of gardening shears left and the ground and the damaged mailbox.

The post advices residents to make sure all mail is brought into homes at the end of the day. If you’re not going to be home, ask a neighbor to take in your mail or put a temporary stop on delivery until you return from an extended time away.

While mailbox break-ins may seem to be a fairly new occurrence in Ashcroft street, according to the post, recovery gift and book store My 12 Step Store and its neighboring businesses, located northeast of Ashcroft Avenue, in the WeHo Tri-West area, have had their mailboxes broken into numerous times this past year.

The last incident as recent as February 9th, when all eight mailboxes were ripped open at the 8730 Santa Monica Boulevard shopping center.

“The mailboxes were all broken into at this shopping center and all the mail was stolen, including checks from different businesses,” said My 12 Step store owner RJ Holguin after a mailbox break-in on January 28. “I contacted the police and the landlord. We called the police for the mail burglary because once they steal mail, they get their hands on checks and it opens us up for fraud. They can make a fake check and write any amount. Especially now with people making virtual deposits. They deposit them into an account and then they close the account.”

Community members are pressed to report all incidents to the Weho Sheriff by calling the Station at 310-855-8850. It’s important that the Sheriff knows what’s happened so that they may be on the look out.