Three Texas men have copped to a high-stakes heist involving the bold daylight robbery of a USPS letter carrier, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. Cedrick Eugene Mims, Danny Yogi Oriszul Powell, and Cameron Kemond Gist each pleaded guilty to swiping a key that opened a treasure trove of mail across their city.
The trio admitted in federal court to the strong-arm tactics employed on October 24, when Mims confronted a carrier with a 39mm pistol, demanding the "Arrow Key," a USPS master key that gives access to blue collection boxes. The details of their plea reveal that the men didn't stop at the key — they also took a postal scanner and keys to the carrier's vehicle. The Department of Justice reported that Powell manned the getaway wheels while Gist supplied the firepower.
Justice is now poised to serve a heftier dish for Mims and Gist, who are staring down the barrel for up to 25 years due to the weapon's enhancement. Powell, who played chauffeur, could see up to a decade behind bars. Their convictions marked a victory for Project Safe Delivery, a USPS and U.S. Postal Inspection Service program aimed at clipping the wings of mail thieves and shielding postal workers from harm.
In the aftermath of these guilty pleas, statistics paint a telling picture of PSD's effectiveness. Arrests for postal-related robberies shot up 72%, while actual robberies dropped 21% and mail theft complaints took a 35% nosedive. The Department of Justice noted that since the initiative’s inception, over 213 suspects have been snagged for similar crimes.
The case was cracked thanks to the investigative prowess of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with an assist from the Fort Worth Police Department. With Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Montes leading the prosecution, this case stands as a hardened reminder of the repercussions that follow assaulting the integrity of our nation's mail service — and the resolve of those guarding it.
