Tax payment checks missing after break-in at Centereach post office

A reported break-in at the Centereach post office may have included the theft of about two dozen checks sent to the Brookhaven Town tax receiver's office, officials said Wednesday.

Alarmed taxpayers called Brookhaven Town Receiver of Taxes Louis Marcoccia this week after receiving postcards from the town alerting them that they had failed to pay their property tax bills, he said in a telephone interview. Taxes were due Monday, he said.

One taxpayer told him she was confused because bank records showed her payment had been cashed, though it was not clear by whom, Marcoccia said.

“The check was cashed," he said. "She went to the police, the police said this was a post office issue. She went to the post office and she was told they had a break-in.”

While town officials don’t know how much may have been stolen, Marcoccia said each check would have been worth several thousand dollars.

Marcoccia said officials believe thieves took checks made out to the tax receiver’s office, whited out the line indicating the intended recipient, substituted another name and cashed them — a scam commonly known as "check washing."

A U.S. Postal Service spokesperson referred a reporter to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which investigates crimes involving the post office. An email to the agency was not immediately answered.

Staff did not answer a phone call placed to the Centereach post office Wednesday afternoon.

Suffolk County police, in an email, said people who believe they may be a victim of mail theft should file a police report by calling 631-852-COPS or by visiting their local police precinct.

Marcoccia said residents believed to be check washing victims will not be assessed the standard 5% late fee. The problem was believed to be isolated to Centereach post office customers, he added.

“Minimum, because most people pay online, I don’t think it’s going to be more than 20 or 30 in Centereach,” he said.

Concurrently, his office has received complaints from residents about phone callers claiming to be government agents collecting tax payments, Marcoccia said. The calls did not come from Brookhaven staff, he said.

Brookhaven "does not initiate telephone calls requesting tax payments by credit card or any other form of payment over the phone," town officials said in a statement. Residents "should immediately terminate the call," the statement said.

Brookhaven receives property tax payments from about 190,000 households, Marcoccia said.

More than 60% of Brookhaven residents pay property taxes online, he said. Online payments are safer than checks, in part because taxpayers immediately receive confirmation that online payments have been received, he added.

“What we’re going to do next year is really [try] hard and tell people to pay online,” he said.

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.