BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) – Even the federal government is not immune from the impacts of Bakersfield’s ongoing problem with itinerate crime in the downtown area.

Bakersfield police confirm that an individual broke into the Merle Haggard post office at 18th and G streets early Friday morning and made himself at home until an employee arriving for work discovered him. Police, responding to a reported burglary in progress, arrived at 4:14 a.m.

The unidentified man, who was naked, was taken to a local hospital for psychiatric observation.

Postal inspector Matt Norfleet said the man broke a window at the west entrance and knocked a heavy interior mahogany door off its hinge, bypassing a heavy steel chain in the process to gain access. Bakersfield police put the damages at $2,000.

Post office employees who requested anonymity because they aren’t authorized to speak on behalf of the USPS said the unidentified man was found sleeping on a floor mat inside the main lobby. He had apparently urinated on the floor, knocked over displays and attempted to break into post office boxes. 

The burglary isn’t just a standard breaking and entering situation. Breaking into a post office can be prosecuted as a federal crime and attempting to illegally access a P.O. box is another.

No word on whether the alleged burglar will face that type of charge.