A Florida postal worker is facing charges after investigators say she stole a winning lottery ticket from the mail and cashed it herself.
Authorities say 28-year-old Lakaysha Lockhart worked at a post office in Oakland Park when a Tampa-area woman mailed a winning Pick 4 ticket worth $2,600 to a relative in South Florida.
When the ticket never arrived, police launched an investigation and discovered it had already been redeemed at a Florida Lottery office in Miami Lakes.
Investigators allege Lockhart used her access as a postal employee to steal the ticket before claiming the winnings.
She now faces multiple charges, including grand theft, petty theft, possession of stolen mail and using a communication device to facilitate a felony. Lockhart has since bonded out of jail.
Postal inspectors are asking anyone who suspects mail-related fraud or theft to report it.