GEORGETOWN TWP., MI (WHTC-AM/FM, July 17, 2023) – Two men in their mid-20’s from Georgia are cooling their heels in the Ottawa County Jail after a weekend arrest on alleged mailbox theft charges.
On Monday, 26-year-old Anthony Jenkins of Hephzibah, a suburb of Augusta, and 25-year-old Kareif Alexander of Lithonia, located east of Atlanta, were arraigned via video hookup and charged with five counts of mail theft. Hudsonville District Court Judge Judy Mulder ordered them held on $7,500 and $10,000 bond, respectively.
According to Ottawa County Sheriff’s Sergeant Matthew Wildfong, deputies were dispatched to Rosewood Street west of 12th Avenue in Jenison around 1:50 AM on Sunday morning. It was reported that there were subjects taking mail out of a mailbox at DK Land Development’s offices there.
A vehicle matching the description of one being driven by the suspects was spotted by a prowl car around the 40th Avenue/Port Sheldon Street location, and mail began flowing out of the vehicle as soon as the suspects saw that law enforcement cruiser. Once the suspects’ vehicle was pulled over, Jenkins and Alexander were arrested.
Stolen mail has been an issue for years in Ottawa County, with one man convicted seven years ago on one such spree; a ring involving thousands of dollars cropping up last fall; and a police chase on US-131 in Grand Rapids in March also involved mail thieves in Ottawa County. It is not know if this incident has any relation to those earlier crimes.
This case remains open, and anyone with any information is asked to contact the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department or Ottawa County Silent Observer (877-887-4536).
