Above: Nail gun believed to have been used to break into the mail truck
(Courtesy of Fairfield PD)
Fairfield Police recently arrested two individuals following the alleged burglary of a mail truck.
According to a press release by the Fairfield Police Department, an officer responded to the intersection of Quail Drive and Fremont Court to investigate a report of someone breaking into a USPS mail truck and stealing contents from inside. The suspects reportedly used a high-powered concrete nail gun to forcefully breach the rear lock of the mail truck. After gaining access to the truck, the suspects reportedly took multiple items of mail as well as some of the postal worker’s personal belongings.
While speaking with law enforcement, the postal worker received notifications on their phone regarding unauthorized attempts to use her credit card at a nearby Target. Officers responded to the Target and obtained surveillance video from the store, which reportedly showed one of the suspects — seemingly male — inside the store. Additional footage obtained from the parking lot also enabled officers to identify a suspect vehicle.
Using Flock cameras, officers followed the vehicle to a hotel in Cordelia and conducted a vehicle stop. One of the occupants, identified as 37-year-old John Scharff, turned out to be on Post-Release Community Supervision for a prior burglary offense, and thus subject to search terms.
Officers searched the vehicle and reportedly discovered the concrete nail gun believed to have been used to access the mail truck.
Officers then searched the hotel room where Sharff was staying and discovered a large amount of stolen mail, the postal worker’s belongings, and several other items believed to have been stolen from various areas of California such as social security cards, passports, and blank checks bearing the names of different victims.
Both Scharff and a second individual, identified as 32-year-old Marina Larson of Vacaville, were arrested on suspicion of burglary. It was unclear at press time whether either of them had retained an attorney.
