An alert Winnona Park resident helped Decatur police capture two juveniles accused of stealing mail from neighborhoods around the city of Decatur.

The Lenox Place neighborhood was hit on Jan. 24 and there were additional thefts reported earlier this week on Oak Lane, Glendale Avenue, Sycamore Street and West Pharr Road.

Decatur Police Sgt. Jennifer Ross said a resident of Winnona Park called them this morning to report two males going through mail boxes on Avery Street. She gave police a detailed description and officers were soon able to arrest the suspects. Police recovered mail stolen from 14 homes in Winnona Park and Oakhurst.

After further investigation, police concluded that the suspects are responsible for the earlier mail thefts.

Here are all the details provided by Sgt. Ross:

“Decatur Police have been investigating a series of mail thefts reported in late January in the Lenox Place neighborhood and earlier this week in the Glendale/East Ponce de Leon Avenue/Sycamore Street area. In earlier messages to the Decatur community, we have asked that you call police immediately if you observe suspicious behavior. We would like to express a tremendous thank you to the Winnona Park resident who quickly called in this morning to report witnessing two males going through mailboxes on Avery Street. Her immediate response, detailed physical description, explanation of what behavior she witnessed and direction of travel allowed officers to strategically approach the area, locate the suspects and recover mail that had been stolen from 14 locations throughout the Winnona Park and Oakhurst neighborhoods this morning. Several checks were included in the recovered items. Additional investigation has revealed these are the same suspects from the previously reported mail thefts in the Lenox Place neighborhood in January and earlier this week in the Glendale/East Ponce de Leon Avenue/Sycamore Street area. The suspects, both juvenile males from Decatur, have been charged with multiple counts of theft. The resident who called to report what she saw is to be commended for her awareness and quick response.”