'I can’t comment': GOP candidate under fire for allegedly 'stealing mail'

24 October 2024

In Upstate New York, Republican Joe Mastroianni — who is running for a seat in the New York State Assembly — is facing allegations of mail theft. And he has said he "will not comment on this specific story."

Mastroianni, in that district, has been trying to unseat incumbent Democratic State Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara. Albany's WRGB Channel 6 News (a CBS affiliate) reports that Mastroianni is suspected of stealing a Santabarbara mailer, and "Ring camera videos" are being cited as evidence of the alleged activity.

Noting that "stealing mail is a federal offense," WRGB reports, "Ring video provided by the law office of Frank Salamone, who's also the Schenectady County Democratic Committee chairman, shows Mastroianni appears to be stealing an election mailer sent by incumbent Assemblymember Angelo Santabarbara. A voter in Scotia retrieved the video after noticing she did not receive the item that appeared in her U.S. Postal Service informed delivery. In the Ring camera videos, the mailman can be seen delivering the Santabarbara mailer around 1:30 p.m., and then, Mastroianni can be seen walking onto the porch with a female just before 6 p.m."

WRGB adds, "You can see, it looks like Mastroianni removes the mailer, folds it up, and puts it in his pocket while laughing."

Although he has declined to discuss the allegations, Mastroianni criticized Salamone for "making this issue central to this year's campaign" during a conversation with reporters.

When WRGB's Tom Eschen asked Mastroianni, "Was that you in the video?," the GOP candidate refused to answer and said, "I don't appreciate kind of the hit journalism.

Eschen also asked if voters would be concerned about him allegedly "stealing mail." Mastroianni didn't respond.

Read WRGB Channel 6 News' reporting at this link and watch the video below or here.

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