South Miami USPS Worker Arrested After Police Allege Rent Checks Were Stolen and Cashed

Allegations center on missing rent payments placed in residential drop boxes

A U.S. Postal Service employee has been arrested in connection with allegations that rent payments placed by tenants into apartment-complex drop boxes in South Miami were stolen and then cashed by the employee. The suspect, identified by police as 31-year-old Jayven Christian Jolly, was taken into custody Wednesday at his North Miami Beach home.

Investigators say the case began after landlords and tenants reported rent payments that did not arrive as expected. Police allege the missing payments included money orders and checks that residents believed they had properly deposited for delivery.

What investigators say they found

Police allege that multiple victims reported missing rent payments dating back to December 2025, triggering an investigation that expanded across more than one South Miami apartment complex. Authorities say the suspected pattern involved rent payments left in drop boxes or mail receptacles used by residents for outgoing mail.

Investigators say financial records and surveillance images tied to ATM and branch transactions supported the allegation that the same postal worker cashed the missing payments. Police also allege that in several instances the instruments were altered so the “pay-to” field reflected the suspect’s name before they were negotiated.

• At least four victims reported missing rent payments beginning in December 2025, police said.
• Police allege the suspect cashed stolen rent payments at multiple financial institutions and retailers, including a credit union and a check-cashing business.
• Authorities say surveillance video and bank documentation were collected as part of the investigation.

Charges and custody status

Jolly faces several fraud- and theft-related charges, including an organized scheme to defraud, communications fraud involving an amount above $300, forgery, uttering forged instruments, and third-degree grand theft, according to jail and police records. As of Thursday, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $25,000 bond.

Broader context: why rent payments can be vulnerable

The allegations highlight a recurring risk for tenants who pay by check or money order and rely on unsecured or lightly monitored drop boxes. When payment instruments are physically accessible before collection, they can be removed, altered, and cashed if controls fail at any point between deposit and processing.

Authorities said the investigation remains open and they are working to identify any additional victims and related incidents.

South Miami police said they continue to investigate and encouraged anyone who believes their mailed rent payment may have been stolen to contact the department.