As ecommerce grows in popularity, so do the amount of package thefts. According to a 2017 Comcast report, 30 percent of Americans say they have had a package stolen from them.
Buffalo's Bill Chapman is one of those victims. He had a $70 dish strainer stolen off his porch.
"You feel helpless when someone takes something off of your property."
He caught it on video with his home surveillance system but only after the thief turned around.
"All I got was him walking back to a jeep Cherokee," Chapman said.
What's unique about this incident, is the man who stole it was following the delivery driver waiting for a drop off.
"So you go back five minutes in the timeline and then you see them delivering it and you see them coming right behind the delivery driver."
7 Eyewitness News ran into a mailman while talking to Chapman. He declined to talk on camera, but confirmed that thieves tailing delivery trucks is a common thing now.
Even with Chapman's video surveillance system, he still feels uneasy when he orders a package.
"It's been a tremendous amount of anxiety there's several days where I'm sitting at work and the ring will go off, so I know there is a package on my porch and I'm sitting their antsy."
With the busy holiday shopping season approaching, the mailman said his best advice would be to order your package to work or a friends house. The best way to make sure your package isn't stolen is to ship it to a location you know people will be.
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