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VIDEO: Frustrated Deliveryman Damages Gate After No One Answers Buzzer

By Gustavo Solis | November 14, 2014 3:43pm | Updated on November 17, 2014 9:00am
 An enraged deliveryman cause more than $4,000 in damage to an East Harlem gate during a failed delivery attempt.
Deliveryman Rage
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EAST HARLEM — A Federal Express deliveryman frustrated that no one was home to receive a package at an East 108th Street building smashed up a gallery owner's security gate, causing over $4,000 worth of damage, before taking off.

What started as a basic property damage claim for Raphael Benavides, who runs Poet's Den art gallery at the East 108th Street property, turned into a weeklong whodunit complete with a red herring and a smoking gun.

It all started Nov. 6 when returned from an errand and noticed the cracked display panel.

"When I looked at the glass I went 'Holy Moly,'" he said. "I had stepped out for a couple of minutes, when I came back I saw the damage."

The incident left large cracks on the gate's display case, as well as scratches and chipped paint throughout the gate. The force of such hard kicking may have compromised the integrity of the gate, according to a repair estimate.

Benavides was told that he'd have to fork over $4,200 to repair the gate, he said.

The first lead in the case came from a neighbor who told Benavides the deliveryman was from UPS. So Benavides posted the video of surveillance on YouTube with the title, "UPS Driver on a Rage Causes Thousands of Dollars in Damage."

Benavides reached out to the international shipping company, which quickly investigated the incident and determined that the deliveryman was not a UPS employee.

A different video showing a different angle cleared UPS, a manager told Benavides Wednesday, the day after the video was posted. He shared the video, which showed the deliveryman walking on the street.

As the two watched the video, the UPS manager pointed out the man's uniform and found the smoking gun — purple gloves. 

This proved that it was not a UPS employee, but it implicated the other international shipping company.

Although UPS never mentioned which company the delivery driver works for, Benavides had a suspect in mind.

"It has to be Federal Express," he said. "I am going to contact Federal Express because it's obvious that it's them."

When DNAinfo contacted FedEx Wednesday evening, a spokesman said they had not heard of the incident but will look into it. By Thursday night, their investigation was complete.

“We are very disappointed to see this video," spokeswoman Ashley Faderewski said. "This behavior falls far short of what is expected of drivers representing FedEx Ground and will be addressed."

FedEx is working with Benadives to "resolve the situation and are in the process of determining the appropriate next steps with respect to the service provider," she added.

Benavides, whose sons would always tell him he should be a lawyer or a police officer, said he enjoyed playing detective.

"It was quite and experience," he said. "It felt like for a few days I was Columbo."