TALENT, Ore. - Three suspects were arrested after being accused of stealing mail from nearly 600 people. Police say dozens more are victims of identity theft.
The crimes have several local law enforcement agencies working together.
Police caught up with the suspects when they ran a red light and led police on a high speed chase. Officers caught up with the vehicle and then the suspects to find there were bigger crimes to connect them with.
"We also found a large accumulation of mail that indicated that's what they were up too and why they were in fact running from the officers," Talent Police Chief Mike Moran said.
Police arrested Gerald Mersereau, Shannara Ibsen and Robert Powelson.
Investigators say the group had been targeting mailboxes for months.
"We believe that they were stealing from throughout the Rogue Valley," Moran said.
"Mail thefts right now are through the roof and the reason they're through the roof is because this group, that is ultimately now getting caught, so I think now we're going to see hopefully a stop to the behavior but they were really out of control," Medford Police Lt. Mike Budreau said.
Investigators are now trying to track down the hundreds of victims.
If you think you may be missing mail, police and the post office are asking you to report it immediately. Call USPS at 1-877-876-2455.
If you believe you may be a victim of identity theft, click here for more information.
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