Reward offered to help catch Denver letter carrier thieves

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service on Tuesday offered a reward of up to $150,000 for information leading to the arrest of suspects who robbed two U.S. Postal Service letter carriers at gunpoint Monday night in northeast Denver.

Neither of the mail carriers were hurt during the incident, but it put yet another spotlight on a scary trend of criminals targeting people in a job that has always been considered mostly safe, biting dogs aside.

“When they come out with a weapon, it’s like wait a minute. Okay now you’re threatening me to get to the mail or the packages,” said Richard Byrne, President of the Colorado State Association of Letter Carriers. “We’ve gotten to the point where we are now targets on a daily basis.”

Byrne said that crimes against mail carriers in Colorado has increased 300% from zero to at least 14 in the last three years — including Monday’s two aggravated robberies.

The USPIS said the incidents both happened around 5 p.m. on two separate routes. One happened in the area of Bolling Drive and Duluth Court. The other occurred in the 4600 block of Eureka Court.

In a statement emailed to The Denver Gazette, the USPIS said: "Recognizing these ongoing safety threats, we have been — and will continue to — implement an engaged, robust nationwide initiative to harden blue collection boxes, enhance collection box key and lock technology and institute dual authentication for change of address protocols."

Byrne did not know if the two mail carriers would return to their jobs this week, but acknowledged that the mental stress of such incidents takes a toll.

He would like to see strict penalties reserved especially for suspects who target mail carriers.

We need for Colorado lawmakers to step up and let the public know that this will not be tolerated. I don’t hear a lawmaker saying 'This is unacceptable'," said Byrne.

Last March, a Lakewood mail carrier making his rounds was robbed at gunpoint by a couple of teenaged suspects looking to cash in on people’s mail and packages. One of those suspects died in a shootout at a nearby Grease Monkey. The other teen, a juvenile, is going through the court system but the details of her case are unknown because she of her age.

The adult woman who was driving an SUV and letting the two teenagers out to steal in the 400 block of South Oak, is in the Colorado Women's prison on unrelated charges. Ashley Cortez, 35, allegedly orchestrated the armed robbery against the veteran letter carrier, who was delivering a registered letter to a private residence when he was held up by two girls — one of whom had a semi-assault handgun, according to the arrest affidavit obtained by The Denver Gazette.

Cortez faces 10 counts, including two charges of aggravated robbery, two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and one count of possession of a weapon by a previous offender.

The Monday afternoon Montbello incident was caught on home security camera video, investigators said. It showed the suspects — three to four people — taking off in a white Hyundai Sonata.

The 20 Tahoe models come equipped with a 5.3L V8 and four-wheel drive, as well as other police specific changes. They cost $53,877 each. The Ford Interceptors feature a 3.3L V6, blind spot detection and "police tail lights," among other modifications, and cost $41,911 each.

The police modified vehicles are typically less expensive than a comparably equipped civilian version, and both dealers have added a special discount of $8,500 and $5,142 from Sil-Terhar and John Elway Chevrolet, respectively.

Other police specific modifications include a lower ride height offering better stability and aerodynamics at high speeds on the Tahoe. The braking system is also improved and the suspension has been specifically tuned for "police type maneuvers," according to a Chevrolet Press release