McALLEN - Authorities have arrested a postal employee on suspicion of stealing mail, federal officials announced Thursday.

Richard Anderson Jr., 58, of Harlingen, was arrested Wednesday by the U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General. Anderson worked for the Postal Service in McAllen, according to a statement released by the U.S. Justice Department.

The arrest marked the end of a four-month investigation. Department store gift cards began disappearing from local mail in December 2007, and the Office of the Inspector General began investigating.

The probe led to the McAllen main post office at the intersection of Pecan and Bicentennial boulevards. Agents arrested Anderson on Wednesday, finding him with several gift cards missing from the mail, authorities said.

Pilar Navarro, 63, of Santa Rosa, stopped by that post office Thursday afternoon. He said he uses the Postal Service about once a week to send bills and other business correspondence, and he plans to continue doing so.

"One guy doesn't affect everything," Navarro said as he bought stamps from a vending machine. "Unless there are more."

The Postal Service recently received the honor of most trusted government agency. The award came after a private agency surveyed 9,000 U.S. citizens, asking which of 74 government agencies they most trusted.

Delores Killete, vice president and consumer advocate with the Postal Service, said her 230-year-old agency has a tradition of trust.

"Our employees work hard to maintain that trust," Killete said in a statement. "They earned this honor and recognition for the value that trust brings to the organization, and to the country."

Julia Robbins, 57, of Pharr, said she has had problems with lost mail in the past, and she often uses UPS and FedEx as alternative, particularly when sending something important.

Robbins said she sent her 28-year-old son a birthday card with a $100 bill in it last month via certified mail. When her son wasn't home for the delivery, the Postal Service returned it to the post office. Robbins said she called the Postal Service in Austin to inquire about it, and workers told her they would send the card back to her.

She said it never came.

"I can't trust them anymore," Robbins said.

Anderson remains in custody on federal charges and has a bond hearing scheduled for 3 p.m. Friday.
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Zack Quaintance covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4447.