Delos Thurston, a 27-year-old resident of Clinton, New York, pleaded guilty on Apr. 7 to money order fraud. The announcement was made by First Assistant United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Matthew M. Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the Northeast Area Field Office of the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General.
Thurston admitted that between April 2025 and January 2026, while working as Postmaster at the Morrisville Post Office in New York, he fraudulently issued 179 money orders for his own benefit without paying for them. This resulted in a theft of $118,088.19 from the United States.
“This defendant stole from the honest, hard-working American taxpayer. That he did so by abusing the authority entrusted to him as a public servant is abhorrent. We thank the Office of Inspector General for its continued efforts to bring fraudsters to justice,” Sarcone said.
Modafferi said, “The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General is committed to upholding the integrity of the Postal Service and its workforce. Our office will continue to investigate Postal Service employees who violate the public’s trust and engage in fraudulent activity. The USPS-OIG is thankful for the great longstanding relationships we have developed with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to combat fraud.”
Sentencing for Thurston is scheduled for August 6 before Senior U.S. District Judge Glenn T. Suddaby. He faces up to five years in prison, a fine as high as $250,000, and up to three years supervised release if convicted under federal sentencing guidelines.
The case is being investigated by USPS-OIG and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. McCrobie.
