• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Get Sports Collectors Daily via EMail
    • Advertise with SC Daily
    • Write for Sports Collectors Daily
    • Write About Your Sports Collection
    • Where Can I Sell My Baseball Cards?
  • Hot on eBay
    • Most Watched Graded Rookies
    • Most Watched PSA 10 Cards
    • Most Watched BGS, BVG Cards
    • Most Watched SGC Cards
    • Most Watched Baseball Cards
      • Most Watched 2023 Baseball Cards
      • Most Watched 2022 Baseball Rookie Cards
      • Bowman Chrome Cards
      • Wander Franco Cards
      • Mike Trout Cards
      • Fernando Tatis Jr. Cards
      • Babe Ruth Cards
      • Hank Aaron Cards
      • Jackie Robinson Cards:
      • Mickey Mantle Cards
      • Willie Mays Cards
      • Vintage Baseball Card Sets
      • T206 Cards
    • Most Watched Basketball
      • Top 100 Most Watched Basketball Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2022-23 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2021-22 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2020-21 NBA Rookie Cards
      • 100 Hottest 2019-20 NBA Rookie Cards
        • Zion Williamson Rookie Cards
        • Ja Morant Rookie Cards
      • Michael Jordan Cards
      • Kobe Bryant Cards
      • LeBron James Rookie Cards
      • Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie Cards
      • Luka Doncic Rookie Cards
      • Prizm Basketball Cards
      • Panini National Treasures
    • Most Watched Football Cards
      • Most Watched NFL Rookie Cards
      • 2022 NFL Rookie Cards
        • Brock Purdy Rookie Cards
      • 2021 NFL Rookie Cards
      • 2020 NFL Rookie Cards
        • Joe Burrow Rookie Cards
        • Justin Herbert Rookie Cards
        • Jalen Hurts Rookie Cards
      • Josh Allen Rookie Cards
      • Patrick Mahomes Rookie Cards
      • Tom Brady Cards
    • Most Watched Hockey Cards
      • Top 100 Most Watched Hockey Rookie Cards
      • Most Watched 2020-21 Rookie Cards
      • Most Watched 2019-20 Rookie Cards
      • Connor McDavid Cards
      • Wayne Gretzky Cards
      • Bobby Orr Cards
    • Most Watched Soccer Cards
    • Most Watched UFC Cards
    • Most Watched Golf Cards
    • Most Watched 1 of 1 Cards
    • Most Watched Racing Cards
    • Top Sports Card Dealers on eBay
    • Most Watched Memorabilia
      • Vintage Sports Memorabilia
    • Vintage Sports Tickets, Stubs
    • Most Watched Autographs
  • Ending Soon on Ebay
    • Baseball Cards
    • Basketball Cards
    • Football Cards
    • Hockey Cards
    • Soccer Cards
    • Golf Cards
    • UFC Cards
  • Top - Ad

Sports Collectors Daily

Sports Collectors Daily

Sports collecting news - Sports cards and sports memorabilia industry news.

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network. 

  • Sports Memorabilia News
  • Sports Card News
    • Modern Sports Card News
      • New Sports Card Release Calendar
      • Shop Talk
    • Vintage Sports Card News
      • Affordable Vintage Cards, Collectibles
      • Old Baseball Card Sets
      • Old Basketball Card Sets
      • Old Football Card Sets
      • Old Hockey Card Sets
      • Vintage Pack Facts
  • Business/Industry News
    • Sports Memorabilia Business News
    • Sports Memorabilia Industry News
  • Around The Hobby
    • Editor’s Blog
    • David Cycleback’s Identification and Authentication Advice
  • Popular Stories
  • Sell Your Cards
You are here: Home / Around the Hobby / Ex-Postal Worker Sentenced In Theft Of High-End Cards

Ex-Postal Worker Sentenced In Theft Of High-End Cards

June 22, 2016 By Bob D'Angelo

A Massachusetts dealer-collector finally will be getting his exquisite — and expensive — basketball cards back. And the former postal clerk who stole and tried to sell that dealer’s 23 high end cards through the internet — including a 2003-04 LeBron James Upper Deck Exquisite rookie patch card worth at least $25,000 — was sentencLEBRONSTOLENCARDed Tuesday to three years of probation by a federal judge in Boston.

Earlier this year, Venecia “Melissa” McLaren, 30, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty to theft of mail by a postal service employee. On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Senior Judge Mark L. Wolf ordered the probation and also said McLaren must pay a $3,000 fine and $10,964 in restitution. McLaren also must serve the first four months of her sentence confined to her home and must use an electronic monitoring bracelet for the first two months.

McLaren now lives in New York and works as a clerk in a warehouse.

The Massachusetts dealer, a 37-year-old man named Eric —he asked that his last name be kept anonymous — operates buynicecards.com, a website that focuses on buying, selling, trading and consigning high-end sports cards. He is hoping to regain the cards that were stolen — they were held by police as evidence since McLaren was arrested and are worth at least $68,668 — very soon.

“I’ll be relieved when I have them in hand,” Eric said Wednesday afternoon. “I’m happy it’s over.”

The 23 cards that McLaren was convicted of stealing included a 2003-04 LeBron James Upper Deck Exquisite rookie patch card numbered 13/23 and graded an 8 by Beckett Grading Services; and a 2007-08 Kevin Durant Exquisite rookie patch card, which earned an 8.5 grade.durantstolencard

“(The James card) is probably worth more now,” Wolf said, noting that James and his Cleveland Cavaliers team had just won their first NBA championship earlier this week.

Two of McLaren’s siblings — her sister, Ophelia McLaren; and her brother, Lennica McLaren — have been sentenced to one year of probation for their part in the crime. According to court records, Ophelia and Lennica were arrested after they attempted to sell four of the stolen cards to an undercover agent in New York.

Seventeen of the cards have been found.

“All the major ones were recovered,” Eric said. “The others were worth about $10,000 combined.”

Venecia McLaren had been a postal worker in Jamaica Plains, Massachusetts, and sorted mail and P.O. box deliveries, court records show. On Jan. 21, 2015, she was asked to drive to the Roxbury post office. She drove in her own car and loaded packages into her trunk and brought them back to Jamaica Plain, according to a court filing by her public defense attorney, Cara McNamara. Two packages were left in the trunk of McLaren’s car. Instead of returning the packages, McLaren attempted to sell the cards — worth thousands of dollars — for only hundreds, court records show.

Tuesday’s sentencing of Venecia McLaren ended a nightmare for Eric that began Jan. 20, 2015. In January 2015, Eric said he gave some cards to a friend in Boston to have them graded at an onsite event hosted by Beckett Grading Service. Eric’s friend mailed the cards back in two boxes to West Roxbury, Massachusetts, via insured Priority Mail Express.

When Eric picked up his mail, there was only one package. And 23 cards — including the James and Durant rookies — were missing. But Eric had photographs of each card and a detailed record of each graded card’s serial number.

On March 9, 2015, five of Eric’s cards surfaced on a non-eBay selling site called Offerup.com.

Eric and the Boston police department worked to find the cards, and authorities arrested Venecia McLaren when she tried to sell three of the cards to an undercover agent in Boston and offered to sell a fourth, according to court records.

“Every day I get up and go (to work), I know I messed up my life,” McLaren told the court before her sentencing, according to a story on MassLive.

Eric, who did not make a statement to the court, is now working to get his cards back.

“The guy from the postal inspector’s office texted me today, we’re going to set up an appointment,” Eric said. “I hope to get the cards back by the end of the week.”

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Facebook Messenger

Related Stories:

Retrieving Cards Stolen By Postal Worker Was Long Process Babe Ruth M101-5 rookieNotes: Topps Baseball Sales, Ruth Card Hits $80K, CU Revenue, Butler Autograph Deal Anthony Davis autograph patch card Panini ImmaculateFear the Brow: Anthony Davis Rookie Cards Heat Up NBA Rookie Class Has Potential Star Power LeBron’s First Cards as Cav Returnee to Debut in Cleveland Pete Maravich Basketball Cards Still Resonate Tony Parker Cards: Undervalued?

About Bob D'Angelo

Bob has been a sportswriter and copy editor for more than 35 years and a blogger for a decade. He is celebrating his 50th year of card collecting, and still counts his 1965 Topps Mickey Mantle as his favorite. You can reach him at [email protected].

Filed Under: Around the Hobby, Popular Stories Tagged With: Kevin Durant, LeBron James rookie, LeBron James rookie card, LeBron James rookie cards, Lebron James rookies, postal theft, sports card theft, valuable sports cards

Primary Sidebar

Our articles may contain affiliate links. When you click on links to merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network. 

  • Football
  • Basketball
  • Baseball
  • Hockey

High End Cards and Memorabilia

  • BBCE Authenticated Boxes, Packs opens in a new window
  • Graded pre-War Card Auctions
  • Graded Rookie Cards opens in a new window
  • Authenticated Photos opens in a new window
  • Graded Tickets & Stubs opens in a new window

Bargain Corner

  • Michael Jordan cards $5 and less opens in a new window
  • Kobe Bryant cards $5 and less opens in a new window
  • Mickey Mantle Cards Under $150 opens in a new window
  • Graded T206 Cards Under $150 opens in a new window
  • Pre-War Cards Under $100 opens in a new window
  • Pre-1980 Graded Baseball Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Pre-1980 Graded Football Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Basketball Cards $25 and less opens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Hockey Cards $10 and Less opens in a new window
  • Complete Sets $20 and Less opens in a new window
  • Baseball Hall of Famers for $5 or Less opens in a new window
  • Football Hall of Famers for $5 or Less opens in a new window
  • Hobby Boxes Under $30 opens in a new window
  • Pre-1986 Rookie Cards Under $1 opens in a new window

RSS Auction Report

  • All-Star Cards Accepting Consingments
  • 2023 Auction Schedule
  • SCP Auctions Offers Wilt Chamberlain Rookie Season Uniform Auction – End June 17, 2023

Footer

Categories

  • Around the Hobby
  • Business/Industry News
    • Sports Memorabilia Business News
    • Sports Memorabilia Industry News
  • David Cycleback's Identification and Authentication Advice
  • Editor's Blog
  • Featured Articles
  • Hobby Shop Talk
  • National Sports Collectors Convention
  • Popular Stories
  • Rich Klein's Ramblings
  • Sports Card News
    • Modern Sports Card News
      • New Sports Card Release Calendar
    • Vintage Sports Card News
      • Old Baseball Card Sets
      • Old Basketball Card Sets
      • Old Football Card Sets
      • Old Hockey Card Sets
      • Vintage Pack Facts
  • Sports Memorabilia News
  • Uncategorized

Sponsor Links

  • Sports Card Forumopens in a new window
  • Buying Vintage Sports Cardsopens in a new window
  • Game Used Jerseysopens in a new window
  • Championship Rings For Saleopens in a new window
  • Vintage Basketball Cardsopens in a new window
  • NBA Signed Itemsopens in a new window
  • Autographed Baseballsopens in a new window
  • NASCAR Autographsopens in a new window
  • Vintage Graded Baseball Cardsopens in a new window
  • Player Picturesopens in a new window
  • Vintage Football Cardsopens in a new window
  • Sports Collectors Storeopens in a new window

Pages

Ending on eBay Soon
  • Baseball Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Basketball Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Football Card Auctions on eBay Ending Soon
  • Hockey Card Auctions Ending Soon on eBay
  • Vintage Sports Memorabilia on eBay Ending Soon
Top 100 on Ebay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Baseball Rookie Cards on eBay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Basketball Rookie Cards for Sale on eBay
  • Top 100 Most Watched Hockey Rookie Card Auctions
  • Top Authenticated Vintage Unopened Sports Card Boxes, Packs on eBay
Most Watched on eBay
  • 100 Most Watched Graded Rookie Cards for Sale on eBay
  • 100 Most Watched Tom Brady Card Auctions on eBay
  • 50 Hottest Hobby Boxes at Auction on eBay
  • 50 Most Watched Golf Trading Cards on eBay
  • 50 Most Watched Wrestling Trading Cards on eBay
  • 75 Most Watched Bowman Chrome Cards
  • Most Popular Bobbleheads on eBay
  • Most Watched 1/1 Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Basketball Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Complete Baseball Card Sets at Auction on eBay
  • Most Watched Football Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Football Rookie Card Auctions
  • Most Watched Goudey Baseball Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Hockey Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Racing Cards on eBay
  • Most Watched Soccer Cards for Sale on eBay
  • Most Watched Sports Autographs on eBay
  • Most Watched Sports Jerseys on eBay
  • Most Watched Unopened Sports Card Boxes, Packs on eBay
  • Most Watched Vintage Sports Memorabilia on eBay
  • Hottest Panini National Treasures Cards on eBay
  • Hottest PSA 10 Cards for Sale on eBay
  • What’s Hot on eBay
Sports Memorabilia
  • Sports Card Bargain Bin
  • Sports Memorabilia Auctions Ending Soon on eBay
About Sports Collectors Daily
  • Advertise with SC Daily
  • Contact Us
  • Get Sports Collectors Daily via EMail
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
Sell Your Cards
  • What’s It Worth
  • Where Can I Sell My Baseball Cards?

Copyright © 2023 SportsCollectorsDaily.com | Web Design by Wickam Groupopens in a new window