BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – An intoxicated man was arrested late Friday night after he broke into a South Florida post office and cut open packages in search of valuables to sell for drugs, police said.
Boynton Beach police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater said officers were called to a burglary at the U.S. Post Office on Seacrest Boulevard shortly after 11 p.m.
When officers arrived, they found an "extremely intoxicated" man, later identified as Francis Keller, inside the work room using scissors to open packages, Slater said. A cart full of opened packages was in front of him, Slater said.
Keller, 56, told police that he used to work for the U.S. Postal Service for 30 years and was able to get inside using an old security code for the door, Slater said.
"I worked for the post office for 30 years. They have no imagination. The codes for the doors is the numerical address," Keller told police, according to an arrest report.
Keller told officers that he was planning to steal valuable items and sell them for crack cocaine, Slater said.
Keller was booked into the main Palm Beach County jail and later released on his own recognizance, but jail records show that he was arrested again early Sunday morning on robbery charges.
Slater said Keller went to a Sonic restaurant, approached an employee and asked him about getting a job. Slater said Keller then pulled a gun on the 21-year-old employee and demanded money from him.
After Keller robbed the employee, he ran to a vehicle in the parking lot, pointed the gun at the driver and told him to get out of the car, Slater said.
The 16-year-old driver and his friends inside the car ducked down and called 911, Slater said. Keller ran away but was arrested minutes later.
Slater said Keller's gun was actually a pellet gun. She said he's likely to spend this Christmas in jail "since he clearly violated the terms of his recent bond."