An Amazon delivery driver abandoned dozens of packages in the woods of a Massachusetts town because she was stressed.
A police sergeant in the city of Lakeville, which is about 42 miles south of Boston, found the boxes near 63 Bedford Street during a routine patrol around 2 a.m. Sunday.
When he investigated further, he discovered “three large bags filled with Amazon packages scattered several feet in the woods,” according to a statement from the Lakeland Police Department.
The sergeant’s body camera captured him carrying the containers out of the wooded area. The containers, which contained approximately 80 undelivered Amazon packages, were later returned to the police station.
“I thought, ‘What is that? Is that trash?’ Then I thought, ‘That’s not trash, that’s Amazon,'” the sergeant said as he and another officer loaded the packages into the back of their vehicle.
Police received no reports that the packages were lost or stolen, so they contacted a nearby Amazon distribution center in Middleborough and returned them.
The Amazon driver came forward Monday and visited the Lakeville Police Department to confess that she had left the packages on the side of the road because she was “stressed.”
According to police, he left the packages there on Saturday around 7 p.m.
Pictured: Lakeland Police Sergeant first sees Amazon packages abandoned in the woods.
Later, another officer came to help the sergeant load the packages into the back of his vehicle.
The driver told police she planned to report the incident to her manager. Police did not release the driver’s name.
‘I am proud of the way our Lakeville Police Officers handled and investigated this matter. At this time, we are not pursuing criminal charges and are considering this as a human resources matter for Amazon,” said Lakeland Police Chief Matthew Perkins.
Perkins added that ‘Sgt. Robert probably saved many local residents a Christmas headache by noticing these bags and returning them to Amazon, hopefully in time for a Christmas delivery.
Amazon said NBC News that ‘all customer orders have been reprocessed and reshipped, or are currently in the process of reshipping. Customers can check their accounts for updates on expected delivery times.’
Blake Brangan was one of the residents affected by the missing packages, although he has already received them.
“It’s frustrating, but there are so many more things in life to be more frustrated about,” Brangan said. “It’s really crazy to throw them into the woods like that, but luckily, that officer found them.”
“It’s a stressful time during the holidays, but I really feel bad for whoever it was,” she added.
In the photo: The 80 packages at the police station after being collected by the agents. They were later delivered to a nearby Amazon distribution center.
Blake Brangan, a local resident, noticed his package was missing. He later received it
There are several things customers can do if they are having problems with Amazon orders.
Amazon says that if an order is marked as delivered but the package has not arrived, the customer should look for a delivery attempt notice.
If that doesn’t work, the customer should check with neighbors to see if the item was delivered to the wrong address.
If all that fails, Amazon recommends waiting 48 hours before contacting the carrier and then the seller.
If the package status is marked as undelivered or missing, Amazon will refund the package or direct you to contact the third-party seller directly.