Early Friday morning, San Mateo police apprehended two individuals after a pursuit that began when officers responded to a report of a mailbox break-in at an apartment complex on the 3000 block of La Selva Street in the Los Prados neighborhood. The suspects, James Spearman, 38, of Antioch, and Erika Martinez, 42, of San Francisco, were found to be in possession of mail, identification cards, Social Security cards, and other stolen property belonging to more than 100 people from across the Bay Area.
At approximately 1:01 a.m. on Friday, February 28, police received a call reporting two masked individuals breaking into a mailbox, loading items into a U-Haul van, and departing the scene, according to authorities. Upon arriving at the location, officers quickly identified the U-Haul and attempted a traffic stop. The driver, however, sped away, heading north on Highway 101. The pursuit continued into San Francisco, where the van eventually stopped on the 900 block of Florida Street. Spearman and Martinez fled on foot but were subsequently apprehended and placed in custody.
In addition to the stolen mail and personal documents, officers discovered stolen property from an earlier auto burglary that had occurred in San Mateo roughly 30 minutes before the reported mailbox theft, police stated.
