A WOMAN has revealed a chilling encounter she had on her front porch and it all started with a UPS delivery.
She’s warning other residents to be wary of any surprise knocks at their door from people claiming to be looking for a missing package.
Sonya Brown said it all started when she was woken up by a UPS delivery man delivering an unexpected package in January.
She signed for the package in a hurry, still in her bathrobe, without knowing what was inside.
When she opened the boxes, she found two brand-new iPhone 16 Pro Max devices worth over $2,500, she told Tegna’s Kentucky affiliate WHAS.
They were addressed to her but the label had an unfamiliar phone number.
Brown called Verizon and the company told her someone had opened an account in her name and bought the phones.
She was on the phone with police reporting the identity theft when things took a startling turn.
Two women arrived at her door but her instinct told her not to answer.
“I just kind of peeked and I don’t recognize them,” Brown said.
“Then I realize that these are probably the people who want the package.”
And they even came back two hours later and knocked again.
“I just thought they’re absolutely crazy if they think I’m going to open the door,” she said.
Brown took a look at footage from her doorbell camera and heard a shocking exchange between the two women.
One of them said, “So I say – my name’s Sonya, he left the package here.”
The second woman responded, “Yeah, your UPS package.”
Brown spoke out about the incident to warn other residents in Louisville, Kentucky.
“You need to be aware,” Scott County, Indiana Sheriff Jerry Goodin told WHAS.
Many deliveries come with confirmation numbers that provide the fraudster with the knowledge of the delivery time. This allows them to intercept the package before the victim has a chance to collect it from the mailbox.
After learning about the scheme, the Better Business Bureau warned the public to report any similar situations to police.
Whitney Adkins from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) explained that if someone is attempting to open an account using your details, it indicates that they have managed to access your personal information.
Police were investigating and the phones were seized as part of the probe.
UPS didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment by The U.S. Sun.
Avoiding mail theft
To prevent mail theft, the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) recommends residents take several precautions.
- First, avoid letting mail sit in your mailbox—inspect it daily and remove it promptly.
- For package deliveries, track shipments on the USPS website and sign up for email or text alerts to stay informed.
- If you’re not home when your mail is scheduled to arrive, consider asking a trusted neighbor to pick it up for you.
- For longer absences, you can have your mail held at the Post Office by requesting this service online.
- If valuable mail such as checks doesn’t arrive, immediately reach out to the issuing agency.
- It’s also crucial to update your address with the Post Office and any businesses you regularly correspond with to avoid potential issues.
- Lastly, for outgoing mail, it’s safer to hand it directly to your letter carrier or deposit it inside your local Post Office for added security.
Source: U.S. Postal Inspector
