West Virginia USPS Worker Charged With Election Fraud After Tampering With Vote-By-Mail Requests
A West Virginia USPS worker has been charged with attempted election fraud after tampering with vote-by-mail ballot requests. The suspect has been identified as 47-year-old Thomas Cooper, a mail carrier for Pendleton County.
The Department of Justice brought the charges of attempted election fraud against him on Tuesday (May 26). In their criminal complaint, Cooper is accused of altering eight voters’ party-ballot requests on their “2020 Primary Election COVID-19 Mail-In Absentee Request” forms back in April.
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Of the eight, five were altered from “Democrat” to “Republican.” On the other three, he didn’t change their party request, but that for an absentee ballot. The discovery led to investigation and Cooper’s arrest. Cooper allegedly told investigators, “Yeah… I did it was a joke… I don’t even know them.” Now, he’s facing one count of “Attempt to Defraud the Residents of West Virginia of a Fair Election.”
Furthermore, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said, “Manipulating one’s absentee ballot or application is not a laughing matter – it’s a federal offense. We must protect the integrity of the ballot box, and this demonstrates the aggressive action we will take to do so. It is more important now than ever for voters to watch for unexplained or suspicious marks and/or any other irregularity with their ballot. If something looks suspicious, let us know right away.”
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