New Jersey Man Sentenced for Robbing Lewiston Postal Carriers, Burglarizing Paris and North Monmouth Post Offices

Press Release

Winston McLeod and Lance Funderburk committed 3-town crime spree in January

PORTLAND, Maine: An Orange, New Jersey man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland for burglarizing two Maine post offices and robbing at knifepoint two U.S. Postal Service letter carriers.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen sentenced Winston McLeod, 31, to 57 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. McLeod pleaded guilty on July 23, 2024.

According to court records, during a one-week period in January 2024, McLeod and Lance Funderburk, 31, also from Orange, New Jersey, broke into the Paris and North Monmouth post offices and stole money order printers, mail, computers, post office box keys, and other items. The two men then robbed two Lewiston postal carriers in quick succession on January 20, 2024, threatening to stab each of them with a knife unless they turned over their postal keys.

McLeod and Funderburk were arrested by law enforcement following a traffic stop. A search of the occupants and the vehicle, a white Jeep that matched a vehicle seen in videos from each crime scene, revealed a black butterfly knife, black ski mask, large sums of cash, and several checks determined to have been stolen from the Paris post office. When responding to the Paris location, Postal Inspectors also found two iPhones in the snow directly beneath the broken window used to access the post office. Investigators were able to identify McLeod through a photo of him on the lock screen of one of the phones. Investigators recovered additional stolen items at and near the address where the two men had been staying.

Lance Funderburk pleaded guilty to his role in the crime spree on October 29, 2024, and awaits sentencing. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, with assistance from FBI's Safe Streets Task Force and the Rumford, Lewiston, Paris, and Monmouth police departments.

###

Contact

Updated November 13, 2024