Those New Yorkers lucky enough to have jobs often have a hard time getting to the Post Office in person, because their hours of operation seem deliberately designed to exclude working stiffs. Many of us just pay extra for the convenience of buying stamps at a deli, but this is an increasingly risky transaction, because counterfeit stamps are flooding the market in NYC and elsewhere. We recently got conned ourselves, and turned to the USPS for help getting some payback at the Brooklyn Gourmet Deli on South 2nd Street.
When two pieces of vital correspondence came back with the explanation "counterfeit postage," we called the number for the US Postal Inspector printed on the envelopes: (212) 330-2277. We left a voicemail explaining our misfortune and narced out the deli. A day passed, and then another day, and just when we were beginning to lose faith in the United States Postal Service, a call came through from one Celinda Harris, who says complaints about counterfeit postage are flooding her office, adding that she received approximately 1,000 calls last week.
A manager at the deli, Ali Muhammad, denied the stamps were counterfeit, insisting that he sends an employee to buy stamps directly from the Post Office. But Harris tells us that deli owners usually buy stamps from disreputable vendors who stop by their establishments, and that the retailers rarely know they're selling bad stamps. We worried Muhammad and others might be deported, but Harris said the owner of the deli would just receive a "letter of warning." As of last week, the deli was still selling the bogus stamps, resulting in countless Williamsburg residents missing the deadlines on their credit card payments and incurring dreaded late fees!
Asked how the counterfeit stamps are spotted, U. S. Postal Inspector Emily Tarrats explains, "Mail is processed through an automated system. The system is set up to detect security features within a stamp. Counterfeit and/or illegitimate stamps do not have these security features and are therefore detected." She also points out that the USPS website has a feature that enables you to locate alternative places to buy stamps that are authorized by the USPS. The more you know!
