A Wilmington man has been sentenced to 70 months in federal prison for conducting a series of fraud schemes that netted him over $900,000, according to an announcement from U.S. Attorney Julianne E. Murray of the District of Delaware.
Court documents reveal that Crandall Speights, 43, engaged in mail theft by driving through neighborhoods at night and stealing checks from mailboxes. He altered these checks and deposited them into accounts he controlled, defrauding individuals and banks out of approximately $345,250 between June 2019 and October 2021.
In addition to the mail theft scheme, Speights submitted six fraudulent loan applications under COVID-19 relief programs—the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program—from June 2020 to April 2021. These applications falsely claimed business ownership by Speights or associates. This led to an additional $559,999 being fraudulently obtained from the Small Business Administration. The proceeds were moved between various bank accounts to hide their origin.
Speights was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2023 but later fled the area while on release, evading authorities for about eight months until his arrest in New Jersey in January 2025. At the time of his apprehension, law enforcement found further evidence including checks totaling $53,760 as well as multiple bank cards and identification documents belonging to others.
He admitted to spending much of the stolen funds on gambling and luxury goods. Authorities seized more than 40 pieces of jewelry worth approximately $477,705—including a gold ring valued at $75,000 and a bracelet worth $102,900—as well as fur items valued at about $56,250.
“Fraudsters do real damage to our community, by altering checks found in the mail, diverting taxpayer funds, and looting government programs. We will work hard to ensure that wrongdoers are brought to justice, and that no one may divert people’s hard-earned money for their own personal gain,” said Julianne Murray, U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware.
Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge with IRS-Criminal Investigation added: “This is an important victory for the American public. Not only is a criminal going to jail for his crimes, but the government has seized a significant portion of the illegal proceeds through asset forfeiture. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners and investigate criminals who engage in such brazen and fraudulent conduct.”
Christopher Nielsen, Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division for the Postal Inspection Service stated: “Protecting the mail from theft is a core mission of the Postal Inspection Service. By perpetrating mail theft, Mr. Speights harmed real people who were using the mail to pay their bills. By filing false claims on government benefit programs, Mr. Speights deprived others of needed assistance. I want to recognize the hard work of the Inspectors and the Special Agents from the IRS who worked this investigation. I also want to acknowledge the efforts of the United States Attorney’s Office in Delaware for their continued support in investigating and prosecuting these cases.”
The investigation was conducted by IRS–Criminal Investigation and U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Assistant U.S. Attorney Carly A. Hudson prosecuted the case.
