Braintree thief disguised as delivery man taking packages off doorsteps

Package thefts are nothing out of the ordinary, particularly around the holidays when front doors often get piled with boxes.

But in Braintree, neighbors came across something new -- a thief in disguise as a delivery man.

A homeowner in Braintree posted a video of the incident as a man walks up to the front steps of her house, pretends to drop something off, then grabs a box that was already there and just walks away.

She reported the incident to the police and then posted the video on Facebook, hoping someone might recognize the thief.

A few doors down, Boston 25 News showed the video to neighbors who said it had crossed their minds before that such a thing could happen here.

"You know they ring the buzzers in our complex and we just hit the button, [we] don't necessarily check every time," said one of the neighbors who lives on the street. "I was actually wondering yesterday...I hit the buzzer and thought, I hope that's an actual delivery guy and not someone just coming in grabbing stuff and leaving."

Braintree Police said this isn't the only recent theft like this. There was another reported missing package on nearby Sterling Street, the very same day the delivery man in disguise came to the woman's house. No arrests have been made in either case.

As Braintree Police continue to investigate, they recommend residents of this area have packages sent to work or somewhere safe so they won't be left unattended on the doorstep.

Cox Media Group