The suspects, Andrea Sosa, 25, and Jeremy Mathis, 23, both of San Jose, were arrested on numerous counts of receiving stolen property, car theft, forgery and burglary.

Santa Clara County sheriff's detectives arrested them after an investigation led them to the Marriott Hotel in Los Altos, from which the suspects were operating. Police believe the suspects stole the car earlier from a Los Gatos residence.

Another suspect in the mail-theft ring, Joan Pifer of San Jose, was arrested by the San Jose Police Department, said Det. John Spagnola of the Santa Clara County Office of the Sheriff. Spagnola said the sheriff's office is on the lookout for one more person, identified as a female suspect in the case.

"I have sent flyers to all the hotels in Santa Clara County and have asked them to keep an eye out for her," Spagnola said.

Also recovered were 15 bank checkbooks, 10 credit cards and a credit card scanner, six Internet account passwords, five identification cards and a Sprint access code that allowed access to the Sprint database of personal customer information.

Spagnola said Sosa and Mathis are now being held in the Santa Clara County Jail and are believed to be a small part of a larger criminal conspiracy involved in mail theft.

He said according to Sosa and Mathis, there are about 50 people between the ages of 17 and 25 involved in the mail theft ring.

"However, this information cannot be verified," he said.

Sheriff's office spokesperson Deputy Terrance Helm said identity and mail theft have been a constant problem in the Bay Area for the last three to five years.

He said a few months ago officers caught a suspect washing checks.

Mail thieves wash checks with household products to alter check information and then use a dryer or iron to dry them.

Helm said that as a precautionary measure, residents should invest in locking mailboxes and should not place outgoing mail in open mailboxes. He said there have been many instances in which maids and yard workers were found stealing mail.

Postal Inspector Pedro Colon said there is a bigger incidence of mail theft in the warmer months because there's more activity in general and people are on the move.

Spagnola said the recovered mail will be returned to the owners soon.