MIA stamps from ON the parcel. A new one for me, first time in 45 years!

[ricarmic]

Customer in BC contacted me today, as you know I like to put nice stamps on the packages since I'm a stamp seller.

This customer is a great customer so I put very nice modern stamps (souvenir sheets for the philatelically conversant) on the 9.5x11 ebay branded cardboard envelope, covering the entire envelope except the expedited label and return address. Note that most of my packages are covered in stamps, normally though they're older stamps doing most of the covering.

At some point in the mailstream someone STOLE ALL the stamps off the envelope, front and back! You can see the scrape marks where they scraped/peeled them off, some of the cardboard is missing. There aren't any bits of the stamps which one would normally expect to see because the souvenir sheets are lickem and stickem, they can't be peeled off like the contact cement stamps can be, normally scraping/peeling them off would leave some of the stamps on the cardboard too. I suspect they may have steamed them off, the style of the scrape marks look like that is the case.

After they stole the stamps though they put the envelope back into the mailstream and the package was delivered! This part surprises me a bit because one would expect they would have considered the fact that the recipient would complain that the stamps were all taken off in transit, although the takee may have assumed the recipient wouldn't care if the stamps were missing, or they realized afterward it was being tracked.

I have had stamps fall off of course and for those who remember the Hockey souvenir sheets ($2.50, $1.80) that looked like hockey cards, I did have some of those peeled off, but never ALL the stamps on the package, this is a first ever event!

It is so fortunate that they didn't keep the package, it had several 100 $$ of stamps inside! Silver lining I guess. I'm also glad that as always the stamps inside are enclosed in plastic, that would have protected them if steaming was employed. (the envelope was never opened)

Myself and the buyer are going to put tickets in with CP but I don't imagine much if anything will happen. I might get the $25 postage back.

If there's anything else newsworthy I'll add it later on....

[zee-chan]

They must be some very special stamps for the thief, for them to go through so much effort to steal them... yet still has the conscience to put it back in the mail stream 😅

[femmefan1946]

If the thief really did steam off the stamps I hope he got some nice scald marks from his nefarious activity.

Thank heavens he didn't use the safer "soak in tepid tap water" method that could have damaged the parcel contents.

[marnotom!]

😮

 

[pjcdn2005]

That is very bizarre!

[byto253]

Has to be real, to bizarre to make up!

[brettjet38]

[ricarmic]

I'm not sure if it will stick but here's a picture of the back of the envelope...

[byto253]

Was the barcode label still on it? 

[ricarmic]

On the other side yes everything except the stamps was just as it was when mailed.....that's how it got delivered.

[byto253]

Ah, ok.  I guess once the barcode is issued that is what really matters.  

[ricarmic]

I always also put the buyers address on directly on all items with barcodes for safety sake.

We had a bad batch of customs labels, they did not stick at all, that one roll was so bad I had to put scotch tape around all 4 sides, we went through a lot of the POs scotch tape before that roll was done (they were having trouble getting replacement labels delivered for some time). Which was good reinforcement that putting my own extra address on is worthwhile.....

[byto253]

I have an old Seiko thermal label printer and I put my own addresses on everything as well. 

Labels are still available and even found 4 boxes are a yard sale his year for 50 cents each 🙂  

[kawartha-ephemera]

That's bizarre, I guess the stamp collecting world is alive and well!

Looking at that envelope I'd wager the thief used one of those little hand held steamers, the stamps would scrape off real quick. They're fantastic for defrosting frozen evaporator coils too.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

@kawartha-ephemera 

I've had stamps release when trying to wedge a bubble envelop into the comunity mail box. Fits fine no problem through my plastic template. 2 cm's? Barely!!!! If you catch before the parcel is all the way in you can repair by taking home and re glueing.  Something the post office doesnt appreciate is tape over top of stamps.

Wonder in the OP's case if the stamps were removed by CP?

-Lotz

Can I tape over a stamp Canada post?

No. Although you can glue unused postage stamps onto an envelope, any method of adhesion must allow a cancellation device to come into contact with the stamp. Tape or plastic coverings on the stamp will prevent this, so they're prohibited.

[ricarmic]

Yes "lickem and stickem" stamps can only stick so well to the poly/bubble envelopes, I'm actually suprised they stick as well as they do!

One isn't supposed to overlap stamps either but I see this regularly allowed anymore, not sure if there's an official rule for that or not.

For 100% sure CP did NOT remove the stamps, they would never do that, the only reason they would get involved is if they thought the were the illegal reused ones or counterfeit and in that case the package would be preserved when they followed up with the sender and it would not be delivered. I have had customers who've been engaged for the reuse part, a LONG time ago now, but CP was directly involved with the sender and the package at issue was kept intact and not delivered. I've never encountered nor heard of the process if  the stamps were counterfeit but it is probably similar unless it is on a large scale then the police/RCMP would likely be involved.

The stamps on the package were large colourful souvenir sheets (a group of stamps) of very recent vintage, nobody would consider them as likely reused nor counterfeit (which of course they werent).

Because I know what SS were on the package, I'm not totally surprised this particular one had this problem at this time of year.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

---

@ricarmic wrote:

Yes "lickem and stickem" stamps can only stick so well to the poly/bubble envelopes, I'm actually suprised they stick as well as they do!

One isn't supposed to overlap stamps either but I see this regularly allowed anymore, not sure if there's an official rule for that or not.

For 100% sure CP did NOT remove the stamps, they would never do that, the only reason they would get involved is if they thought the were the illegal reused ones or counterfeit and in that case the package would be preserved when they followed up with the sender and it would not be delivered. I have had customers who've been engaged for the reuse part, a LONG time ago now, but CP was directly involved with the sender and the package at issue was kept intact and not delivered. I've never encountered nor heard of the process if  the stamps were counterfeit but it is probably similar unless it is on a large scale then the police/RCMP would likely be involved.

The stamps on the package were large colourful souvenir sheets (a group of stamps) of very recent vintage, nobody would consider them as likely reused nor counterfeit (which of course they werent).

Because I know what SS were on the package, I'm not totally surprised this particular one had this problem at this time of year.

---

@ricarmic 

Although these kind of shenanigans happen all throughout the year it seems to be more at Xmas with the hiring of "temp" help. Probably hear or see once a month on local news someone being caught with hundreds of packages in their garage after someone reports a pattern. Even community mail boxes getting ransacked. Crazy world!!

-Lotz

[femmefan1946]

I suspect those are two different scenarios though.

The worker with a back room packed with undelivered mail is usually overwhelmed by their workload. A mental health crisis really. Reports usually include a confirmation that the mail was otherwise undisturbed and was deliverable and delivered.

The guy ransacking community mailboxes, which happened to my BIL's box a few years ago, is an out and out thief and vandal.