He said he stole to support his wife and two children, ages 1 and 5. There is really no excuse. The only reason I did it was for money for my wife and kids. I was the only source of their income. Chris Kolomjec, case prosecutor, said most of the stolen items were recovered from Barrere's barracks room, where they apparently were being kept for his private use.
Few things bring as much joy for a servicemember than receiving mail from home.
Chief Warrant Officer Deborah Staub, who is in charge of the Consolidated Postal System, said the thefts have had a devastating effect on mail service on Okinawa. She said the seven postal workers charged in the ring have been assigned to other units and do not work with the mail. However, they have not been replaced on her staff. They stay on our books until they are sentenced, so we're down as many people as are assigned, for example, to the post office on Camp Foster. She said postal workers are putting in overtime to make up for the loss of manpower.