Aberdeen Post Office sees red over of post box theft
ABERDEEN — When postal assistant Johannes Job went to empty the post box on the corner of Stockenstrrom Street and Grey Street one morning about a month ago, he noticed that the wooden post on which the metal box was mounted had almost been sawn through.
He reported this to branch manager Leonie Raulstone on his return to the office. Fearing that somebody was trying to steal the box, Raulstone phoned the regional manager in Port Elizabeth and was given permission to remove the box.
It is currently stored in the back of the post office.
Since a postbox in Lotusville was knocked over by a delivery truck many years ago, the only other freestanding postbox in Aberdeen has been in Rabie Street, outside Aalwynhof Old Age Home.
This was emptied regularly, but not every day. Shortly after Job discovered the damage to the box in Stockenstroom Street, he went to collect the mail from the Aalwynhof box as usual one Friday morning.
To his dismay, he noticed that the postbox had gone, with only the wooden pole remaining! Aalwynhof manager Rene Jongkind was horrified and saddened, as the box has always been a valuable facility for residents of the Home, who only needed to walk to the gate to post their letters.
It is not known if there were any letters in the box when it was taken.
It is thought that the box was probably stolen to be sold as scrap metal, as it is cast iron and very heavy.
Another possibility is that it would be offered for sale as a collector’s item online. The matter has been reported to the police.