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Man arrested for burning mailbox in Phoenix that damaged early voting • Arizona Mirror

Phoenix police have arrested a 35-year-old man for allegedly setting fire to a United States Postal Service mailbox in Phoenix early Thursday morning, damaging several ballots dropped into the mailbox ahead of the November election.

Police arrested Dieter Klofkorn on an unrelated warrant and said in a news release that he admitted during an interview to setting the fire in a mailbox at the Osborn Post Office near the intersection of 7th Avenue and Indian School Road. Klofkorn told police that his actions were not politically motivated and that he set the fire to get arrested and taken to prison, police said.

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He has a history of not being housed, according to previous reporting by ABC 15.

According to online court records, Klofkorn has been convicted of several crimes in recent years in Maricopa County Superior Court and in Phoenix and Scottsdale municipal courts, including indecent exposure, theft and trespassing. After several of his convictions, Klofkorn repeatedly violated the terms of his probation, which could also land him in prison.

“Any attack that harms our democratic process will have criminal consequences,” Foreign Minister Adrian Fontes said in a written statement. “Election abuse is a felony in Arizona, and mailbox vandalism is a federal crime.”

Maricopa County Registrar Stephen Richer said in a statement that his office is awaiting details from law enforcement on the condition of the ballots that were in the mailbox at the time of the fire.

“We encourage all voters who have used this drop box in the last 36 hours to check the status of their ballot at https://BeBallotReady.Vote“Richer said in the statement. “A successful delivery will usually appear on this website within 72 hours. Voters should be aware that tomorrow, October 25, is the last day to request a replacement ballot. If a voter believes they have been affected by this incident, they can learn more about how to submit this request at the following address https://Request.Maricopa.Vote.”

Ballots that were in the mailbox but were undamaged will be handled normally, according to the Recorder's Office. If election officials can identify who the damaged ballots belong to, they will contact that voter.

“Thanks to the rapid response coordinated between election officials, law enforcement and the Postal Service, we were able to recover many undamaged ballots and affected voters are being contacted to ensure they can cast their ballot,” Fontes said in a statement.

Fontes added that ballot drop boxes across the state are equipped with security measures “to prevent and detect physical attacks.”

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