Santa Claus would be mortified? How could you steal Christmas mail? Several families were more likely to have a nice holiday after an alert witness and quick police work led to the arrest of a suspected mail thief accused of stealing Christmas cards out of mailboxes in Washington state.

A witness and her husband saw a car going by and opening each mailbox on the street. They then saw the woman run to her car with her hands full of mail. A little later, they spotted the woman opening mailboxes on another street. As reported in www.heraldnet.com.

When they confronted the woman, the suspect told the couple she was putting postcards in the mailboxes. They didn't buy her story, particularly after they noticed a pile of mail on the front passenger seat.

The woman told the suspect she was committing a federal offense. The suspect sped off and the couple followed her until she drove through a red light. At that point, they called police and provided a description of the suspect, the car she was driving and a license plate number.

Police arrived at the apartment listed on the vehicle’s registration and found the woman in a bedroom. She allegedly admitted that she stole Christmas cards out of numerous mailboxes.

The mail was returned to the theft victims in time for Christmas.

The 28-year-old thief was booked into jail for investigation of mail theft. She also was wanted on warrants for theft, identity theft, drug possession and possessing stolen property. Does it surprise you she had illegal drugs in the apartment?

I hope she is mandated to a good online or in person anti-stealing class to help turn her life around.