A Florida FedEx driver has been arrested after allegedly stealing customer parcels worth about $10,000, including removing a laptop from one package and replacing it with a bag of popcorn.
Justin Varnes, 35, and his girlfriend, Haeley Olson, 30, were detained in Bay County after an investigation into missing and disputed deliveries, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office said.
Investigators executed a search warrant at the couple’s home on Thursday, October 1, where they recovered numerous items believed to have been taken from FedEx shipments. Some of the property had not yet been reported missing.
FedEx driver accused of replacing laptop with popcorn
Police said evidence from recorded interviews, cameras inside the delivery vehicle, GPS data and recovered goods linked Varnes to the alleged thefts.
He is accused of removing parcels from his assigned van and taking them to his home over a period of about a month. The items allegedly included air-conditioning units, a 70-inch television, laptops, electric bicycles and an iPhone 18 Pro Max.
In one case, investigators said, Varnes took a laptop from a customer’s package, put popcorn in its place, resealed the box and recorded it as delivered.
When the customer confronted him after opening the parcel, Varnes allegedly denied working for FedEx, despite being in a company vehicle and wearing clothing issued by the courier.
Investigators also accused him of marking packages as delivered when the intended goods had not arrived. In other instances, he allegedly removed new merchandise and substituted used personal belongings before resealing the parcels.
The sheriff’s office said Varnes acknowledged knowing that the FedEx vehicle was fitted with cameras and GPS tracking, but continued taking packages from his route.
Olson was also interviewed and allegedly told investigators that Varnes had been bringing numerous parcels into their home. She is accused of knowing about the goods and benefiting from or using some of the property.
Varnes faces charges of grand theft involving property valued between $5,000 and $10,000, as well as conducting an ongoing scheme to defraud. Olson has been charged with being an accessory after the fact to grand theft in the same value range.
The investigation remains active and further charges may be brought, according to the sheriff’s office. Both suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
