Former U.S. Postal Service employee pleads guilty to dumping mail, including election ballots

A former U.S. Postal Service mail carrier has pleaded guilty to discarding nearly 2,000 pieces of mail – including nearly 100 ballots for the 2020 presidential election.

Nicholas Beauchene, of New Jersey, pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court on charges of desertion of mails, which carry a maximum penalty of one year in prison or a $100,000 fine. He is to be sentenced on Sept. 21, according to the Justice Department.

Beauchene, 26, admitted that on Sept. 28, Oct. 1, and Oct. 2, 2020, he discarded 1,875 pieces of mail into dumpsters that "he was assigned to deliver to postal customers," the department said.

The discarded mail included 99 general election ballots, 627 pieces of first-class mail, 873 pieces of standard class mail, two pieces of certified mail, and 276 campaign local candidate political flyers. Law enforcement recovered the discarded mail on Oct. 2 and Oct. 5 and placed it back into the mail stream for delivery.

A regional spokesperson for USPS told The Epoch Times the service no longer employs Beauchene.