Norwalk postal carrier pleads guilty to mail theft

An employee of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has pleaded guilty to mail theft.

Bridgeport resident Umberto Pignataro stole hundreds of pieces of mail, including packages and greeting cards that contained cash, gift cards and other items of value between December 2020 and May 2021 while he was employed as a mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service in Norwalk. Video surveillance captured Pignataro rifling through, destroying and pocketing pieces of mail while servicing his mail route.

When confronted by investigators in May 2021, Pignataro admitted stealing mail and also acknowledged using cocaine while at work and possessing a firearm and used cocaine at work. He was then placed on unpaid leave.

Pignataro was released pending sentencing, which is scheduled for Nov. 17, and he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.