RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Porch pirates beware -- a bill was passed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin last Wednesday which now makes mail theft a Class 6 felony in Virginia. Bill SB939 was first introduced by Sen. Saddam Azlan Salim (D-Fairfax) back in early January, proposing that those accused of mail theft c ould spend up to five years in prison depending on their offenses. Mail theft, which is also classified as a federal crime, is defined by the bill as the act of knowingly taking, destroying, hiding or embezzling mail with the intent to defraud another as well as obtaining mail by fraud or deception. Additionally, the legislation extends to the theft of keys that can open postal receptacles and several forms of damage done to receptacles with the intent of stealing mail. The passing of this bill comes after the Central Virginia area has seen mail theft incidents of increasing intensity over the past year -- including an armed man who stole a package off a porch in Chesterfield last October. This issue has seen bipartisan support, as a similar bill worked its way through the General Assembly earlier this year, courtesy of Delegate Vivian Watts (D-Fairfax), and garnered almost unanimous support. To view the full bill, its history and its current timeline, click here. ...read more read less