A former clerk at the post office in Waverly in Northeast Baltimore has been charged by federal prosecutors with stealing $49,026.93 in money for stamps over a two-year period.

Wanda Denise Mitchell, 47, was charged last week with misappropriation of postal funds in a criminal information filed by the U.S. attorney's office in Baltimore.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $1,000 fine, plus restitution, said Postal Inspector Thomas E. Boyle. He said investigators from his office determined that the money was missing during a routine audit. He described the amount as "substantial."

The amount of stamps sold to post office customers was underreported and the difference was pocketed, Boyle said.

Mitchell had worked for the Postal Service for 20 years, Boyle said. She resigned in January after inspectors confronted her with the results of the audit, he said.

The criminal information filed Friday in U.S. District Court said the money was misappropriated between February 1997 and Jan. 15.

Richard E. Lee, Mitchell's attorney, declined to discuss the charges against his client.

When charges are filed through a criminal information, rather than a grand jury indictment, it almost always means a plea agreement has been reached, though those charged are not bound to honor the agreement at their arraignment.

Pub Date: 6/08/99