diff --git a/core/server/api/posts.js b/core/server/api/posts.js
index 99f7362cc5..97b381105c 100644
--- a/core/server/api/posts.js
+++ b/core/server/api/posts.js
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
+'use strict';
+
 // # Posts API
 // RESTful API for the Post resource
-var Promise = require('bluebird'),
+const Promise = require('bluebird'),
     _ = require('lodash'),
     pipeline = require('../lib/promise/pipeline'),
     localUtils = require('./utils'),
@@ -13,8 +15,9 @@ var Promise = require('bluebird'),
     allowedIncludes = [
         'created_by', 'updated_by', 'published_by', 'author', 'tags', 'fields', 'authors', 'authors.roles'
     ],
-    unsafeAttrs = ['author_id', 'status', 'authors'],
-    posts;
+    unsafeAttrs = ['author_id', 'status', 'authors'];
+
+let posts;
 
 /**
  * ### Posts API Methods
@@ -220,7 +223,8 @@ posts = {
 
     /**
      * ## Destroy
-     * Delete a post, cleans up tag relations, but not unused tags
+     * Delete a post, cleans up tag relations, but not unused tags.
+     * You can only delete a post by `id`.
      *
      * @public
      * @param {{id (required), context,...}} options
@@ -234,17 +238,14 @@ posts = {
          * @param  {Object} options
          */
         function deletePost(options) {
-            var Post = models.Post,
-                data = _.defaults({status: 'all'}, options),
-                fetchOpts = _.defaults({require: true, columns: 'id'}, options);
+            const opts = _.defaults({require: true}, options);
 
-            return Post.findOne(data, fetchOpts).then(function () {
-                return Post.destroy(options).return(null);
-            }).catch(Post.NotFoundError, function () {
-                throw new common.errors.NotFoundError({
-                    message: common.i18n.t('errors.api.posts.postNotFound')
+            return models.Post.destroy(opts).return(null)
+                .catch(models.Post.NotFoundError, function () {
+                    throw new common.errors.NotFoundError({
+                        message: common.i18n.t('errors.api.posts.postNotFound')
+                    });
                 });
-            });
         }
 
         // Push all of our tasks into a `tasks` array in the correct order