The Las Cruces Utilities (LCU) payment drop box located in the parking lot between City Hall and Thomas Branigan Memorial Library was vandalized late Wednesday, Sept. 30, or early Thursday, Oct. 1.
Any LCU customers who submitted payments in the drop box between 8 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, and 8 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 1 should verify through LCU Customer Service that the payment was received. If it was not received, then their payment and personal information on their payment may have been stolen from the box.
When customers drop their payments in the dropbox, most envelopes go into a locked safe and these payments were untouched by the damage Wednesday night and processed as usual. However, customers sometimes attempt to insert their envelopes incorrectly or in the area for envelopes for customer use. This can cause their payment to land outside the safe. Due to the nature of the damage, though it is unlikely, it is possible that some of these payments were taken.
Customers should be putting only checks and their bill stubs in the dropbox, and not providing credit card information. However, checks and stubs contain personal information, such as utility account numbers, names and addresses, and possibly phone numbers. This is personal information but is not protected information.
No other forms of making utility payments were negatively affected, and customers who used payment methods other than the dropbox were not harmed.
Beginning Monday, October 5, customers may make payments at the two cashiering stations within the Customer Service area of City Hall, 700 N. Main St., during regular business hours, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Also, other alternate methods for making utility payments, including pay by phone, online, mail, or at five other Las Cruces locations will be available. The vandalized LCU payment drop box is temporarily out of service.
For more information, call LCU Customer Service at 575/541-2111.