Ballot among stolen mail found during Houston area traffic stop, prosecutors say

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — As the U.S. Postal Service remains underneath the microscope, especially with its role in the election process, a federal prosecutor in Houston is accusing a man of stealing more than 100 pieces of mail, including a mail-in ballot.

According to the office of Ryan K. Patrick, who is the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, 24-year-old Daruin Anelby Rosario was arrested just two days after Election Day on charges of mail theft.

The video above is from an October 2020 report on the security of mail-in ballots.

A criminal complaint stated a traffic stop in the Houston area on Nov. 5 led to a search of Rosario’s vehicle, which, court documents say, produced “a large quantity of unopened and opened mail in the names of others.”

Letters, financial checks and an unopened mail-in ballot for the state of Washington were among the mail pieces, according to the charges. Patrick’s office said the ballot was immediately sent to officials in that state.

It wasn’t immediately clear how Rosario could allegedly get a hold of the mail.

Rosario was due in court Monday afternoon. If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Humble Police Department are conducting the investigation.