Ex-Postal Inspector Pleads Guilty To Stealing $340K From Elderly, Veteran

A former U.S. Postal Inspector has pleaded guilty to stealing over $340,000 in cash from elderly people, including from one veteran.

Scott Kelley, 52, of Pembroke, Mass., formerly worked at the Boston Division headquarters of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS). He admitted to stealing money from packages that elderly victims of lottery fraud scams had mailed, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the District of Massachusetts.

He then laundered some of that money but failed to report it to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Between Jan 2019 and Aug 2023, Kelley intercepted some 1,950 parcels.

Kelley pleaded guilty to five counts of wire fraud; five counts of mail fraud; five counts of mail theft by a postal officer; 23 counts of money laundering; one count of structuring to evade reporting requirements; and five counts of filing false tax returns.

His victims included a 76-year-old retired Army veteran in Kansas, from whom he stole $19,100.

Others included a retired construction worker, a retired nurse, and a 56-year-old living on Social Security disability benefits living in Holliston, Mass., who mailed $15,000 in cash.

Prosecutors added that Kelley allegedly used the stolen cash to pay for prostitutes, a pool patio and bar, and cruise expenses.

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs scheduled Kelley’s sentencing for Nov. 18, 2026.

‘JOLT’ Initiative

During his work at USPIS, Kelley was the team leader of the mail fraud team—in charge of investigating and disrupting scams that targeted senior citizens and other vulnerable people.

This occurred through USPIS’s crime-prevention initiative, Jamaican Operations Linked to Telemarketing (“JOLT”), in which USPIS disrupted mail fraud scams originating in Jamaica that targeted U.S. residents with false promises of sweepstakes or lottery winnings. Scammers posed as lottery representatives and persuaded them to mail so-called fees and taxes before supposedly collecting their prizes.

USPIS created a daily list of parcels it was tracking because they suspected they were part of this scheme called the “JOLT Report.”

In 2019, according to prosecutors, Kelley asked to be put on the email distribution list for the daily JOLT Report and requested to have the suspicious parcels intercepted and sent to him. He then opened the intercepted parcels suspected to be part of this fraudulent scheme and stole any money inside them.

Other Similar Incidents

Scammers and fraudsters have targeted veterans and the elderly in other recent cases.

Earlier this month, a woman pleaded guilty to stealing $160,000 worth of veterans’ and social security benefits that were meant for a family member.

Barbara Ferrell, a 63-year-old woman from Seth, W. Va., pleaded guilty to theft of government money, admitting she stole approximately $160,400 while serving as the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) appointed fiduciary and Social Security Administration (SSA) representative for a family member.

Last month, a woman who stole $240,000 from the VA and used the funds to pay off her student loans, was sentenced to one year in prison.

Rise of Scams

More broadly, veterans are among those at risk of scams.

ccording to a 2025 survey by AARP Research, 39% of veterans had been solicited by someone claiming to represent the VA or another government agency. Another 28% believed their veteran status made them a target. More than a quarter of respondents said they had lost money to fraud, most losing over $500.

To combat issues like these, the VA joined eight federal partners in August 2024 to launch VSAFE.gov, which came with a companion hotline at 1-833-38V-SAFE. Veterans can also file a report at reportfraud.ftc.gov.

Meanwhile, in a memo posted by the Federal Trade Commission last month, the agency warned veterans against those posing as VA staff to seize veterans’ money and data, providing them with go-to red flags to ascertain real VA staffers from scammers.

Members of the public who believe they may be victims of Kelley’s case or other elder fraud scams have been advised to contact [email protected].