Assemblyman William Colton is warning the community in Gravesend about an outbreak of mail stolen from mailboxes.

Colton says he has received numerous complaints from people who say their mail was fished right out of the post office mailbox.

More than a dozen people came into his office this summer, but he says there could be more that haven't said anything. Colton says the thieves are targeting what he calls the "older models."

These mailboxes are designed to where you have to open the handle and stick the mail down the slot.

Colton says this outbreak affects seniors who don't pay bills online.

He has written a letter to the United States Postal Service asking them to speed up the process of replacing older mailboxes with a new secured version.

Police are advising the community to drop their mail off at a post office rather than put their mail in an unsecured box.