Community mailboxes found open with master key inside

An Edmonton man says he is less confident in the security of his mail after finding his community mailbox left open with the master key inside.

On Monday, Mao Lee arrived at his neighbourhoodmailbox near Magrath Boulevard and Magrath Road to pick up his mail, but he was greeted with access to all of his neighbours' mail.

"All three sections were open and clearly there was a key inserted, hanging in one of the sections," said Lee.

He grabbed his mail and waited for a Canada Post employee to return, as he hoped they'd realize the key was left behind with the boxesunlocked andletters and packages sitting inside.

• 'Nobody steals my bills so they can pay them': Edmonton man finds community mailbox open, empty

But an employee didn't arrive, so he locked the three compartments and brought the key to the nearest Canada Post location.

Canada Post issued a statement on Tuesday in response to the boxes being left open.

"We apologize for this incident and are following up internally to ensure it doesn't happen again," the statement read.

"We also appreciate and thank the resident for closing the panel and returning the keys to the nearest postal outlet."

Second incident in three months

It's the second time an incident like this has been reported in Edmonton the past threemonths.

On Aug. 9 a resident found all three compartments of a community mailbox open near 83rd Street and 157th Avenue.

Based on those incidents and others across the country, Lee has less confidence in the security of his mail, he said

"We are all humans and we make mistakes, but when Canada Post says they treat this seriously, I would expect that at least these episodes don't keep on happening," he said.

"This is not the first time and I just wonder if they're doing enough to try to prevent this from happening."

Travismcewan@cbc.ca

@Travismcewancbc