Neighborhood snooper turns out to be mailbox thief

An alert citizen called police about someone snooping in a neighborhood and police were able to take a would-be thief into custody.

According to a Fayetteville Police Department spokesman, officers were dispatched the afternoon of May 14 to the area of Belle Drive and Brandywine Blvd. after a report of a suspicious person handling mail inside various mailboxes. They located the suspect, and during the subsequent investigation police found video evidence that he was stealing mail from a number of mailboxes.

The suspect was apprehended next to the grounds of Joseph Sams School and was in possession of a firearm. He also had a check in his pocket that was not made out to him as well as a debit card that was not his.

Tom Anderson, 24, of Fayetteville faces several felony counts including financial identity fraud, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and possession of a weapon on school property, along with a lesser charge of theft by taking, according to the Fayette County Jail log.

In an unrelated incident at about the same time, a traffic officer responded to an automobile accident on N. Hwy. 85 and a search was conducted of one of the vehicles involved due to the odor of marijuana. The search revealed not only marijuana but also a felony amount of THC, and the suspect had a firearm in his possession as well.

Alijah Ford, 26, of Atlanta was charged with felony drug possession, possession of a weapon in commission of a crime and marijuana possession.