PETERSBURG, Va. -- U.S. Postal Service officials are investigating after tubs of mail were found in a dumpster at a Petersburg apartment complex Friday.
Natasha Lee and others living at Tanglewood Apartments were relieved to see a large U.S. Postal Service van pull up near the dumpster around 9 a.m. Friday.
But instead of a uniformed postal worker getting out, two armed, plain clothes agents began sifting and removing mail from the dumpster.
Mail in Petersburg dumpster
"You suppose to deliver the mail, not dispense mail in the garbage can," Lee said.
Sources told WTVR CBS 6 someone spotted the massive quantity of mail, along with a half-dozen full mail tubs, in the dumpster and call the Postal Service.
Those sources said the mail was placed in the dumpster within the last 48 hours.
Tubs of mail retrieved from Petersburg dumpster
"It's just good someone saw it before the (trash) truck came and took it all away and no one would ever know about their mail being thrown away," Ituri Veals said.
Veals, like many other people in the area, are wondering if their mail might be in the dumpster since several folks said they were missing mail this past week.
"You got one job -- that's to deliver mail," Lee said.
Postal Service officials said they hope to sift through the mail and get it delivered to their customers.
