What to Know
- A postal worker has been arrested for allegedly stealing dozens of credit cards at the Long Island post office where he worked
- Prosecutors say the 28-year-old would gather info about the people whose cards he'd stolen on the dark web and use it to activate the cards
- He'd then allegedly go and purchase luxury goods using a sock full of the stolen cards, a habit that earned him the nickname "The Sock Man"
A postal worker allegedly stole dozens of credit cards from his Long Island post office, using the tens of thousands of dollars he gained to purchase luxury items including designer clothes and a Maserati, prosecutors said.
Naquan Wilson, a 28-year-old from Perth Amboy, New Jersey, was arrested after his shift Tuesday night at the Garden City post office on Franklin Avenue. He had six stolen credit cards on him at the time he was cuffed, according to prosecutors.
But that was just the tip of the iceberg. Prosecutors said Wilson was stealing credit cards from the mail of Garden City residents for at least eight months, an effort that netted him at least 30 credit cards, which he used to make the pricey purchases.
Wilson worked at the post office since 2014 and would scope out the mail, looking for packages containing the credit cards, according to Nassau County Assistant District Attorney Diane Peress.
"He has been stealing credit cards out of the U.S. Mail, which were addressed to people in Garden City," Peress said.
With the cards in hand, Wilson would go on the dark web and use the cryptocurrency bitcoin to pay for information about the people whose cards he’d stolen, prosecutors said.
Local
Wilson was known as "The Sock Man" at The Mall at Short Hills, where he would take the stolen cards in a sock to make illegal purchases, prosecutors said. He also turn heads out in the mall parking lot, where he’d arrive in a Maserati, according to prosecutors.
Complaints from credit card holders prompted the investigation that led to Wilson's arrest.
A search warrant was executed at Wilson's house in Perth Amboy, where authorities uncovered nearly $30,000 in cash, along with handguns, designer shoes and luxury handbags, according to prosecutors, who said he has given a written confession.
Wilson’s girlfriend, 33-year-old Shantavia Davis, was also arrested for her alleged involvement in the illegal purchases. She is an NYPD schools safety officer. She and Wilson have a nine-year-old girl.
Wilson was arraigned and ordered held on $50,000 bail. He was due back in court Friday.
It wasn’t immediately known if Wilson or Davis have attorneys.
Meanwhile, people who used the post office in Garden City felt betrayed.
"I use this post office to send out packages, and if you can't trust them, who are you going to trust?" Ken Zakowski said.
In a statement, the U.S. Postal Service said Wilson's alleged scheme doesn't reflect the more than 522,000 people it employs.
"This type of alleged behavior within the Postal Service is not tolerated and the overwhelming majority of Postal Service employees are honest, hardworking, and trustworthy individuals who would never consider engaging in any type of criminal behavior," the statement read.
the alleged behavior isn't tolerated and that the majority of its employees are honest and trustworthy people. The postmaster in Garden City refused comment and directed questions to police.
