Photo: Maricopa County Sheriff's Office
Former Arizona prosecutor Vanessa Dailey, 49, is facing felony theft charges after allegedly refusing to return $40,000 worth of jewelry mistakenly delivered to her Phoenix condominium. According to court records, the jewelry, intended for a neighbor, was delivered to Dailey on May 31. She allegedly sold a diamond bracelet from the package online before returning the rest of the items.
Dailey, professionally known as Vanessa Hickman, was a division chief at the Arizona Attorney General's Office. She was placed on leave from her position on November 13 after investigators found discrepancies in her story. Despite claiming she never opened the package, postal inspectors noticed excessive tape on it when it was returned. The intended recipient reported a missing $2,400 diamond bracelet, originally purchased from Costco.
Investigators discovered that Dailey had sold an identical bracelet on Poshmark, initially listing it for $1,947 and eventually selling it for $750. Authorities described this price drop as indicative of selling stolen property. Dailey was arrested by U.S. Postal Service inspectors on November 19 and released the following day. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office formally charged her with felony theft on Monday (November 24).
While Dailey currently faces one charge, a Postal Inspection Service report suggested she could also be charged with trafficking in stolen property. Dailey has not commented publicly on the allegations and declined to speak to reporters. This incident is not her first encounter with accusations of theft.
She is currently facing a lawsuit accusing her wrongfully accepting $139,000 in severance funds while serving as the City of Peoria's attorney. She has denied any wrongdoing.