San Jose man indicted for alleged mail carrier robbery amid federal crackdown on postal crimes
A San Jose man has been indicted for allegedly robbing a U.S. mail carrier as part of a crackdown on what the U.S. Department of Justice for the Northern District of California says is an increase in crimes involving interference with the mail, prosecutors said Tuesday.
James Luna, 32, has been charged with allegedly robbing a mail carrier in Sunnyvale on Dec. 30, 2022.
According to prosecutors, Luna matches the description of a person who approached a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier just before 4 p.m. and demanded that the person hand over her postal keys. The mail carrier told authorities that she could see what looked like the butt of a firearm sticking out of the suspect's pocket.
Postal keys allow the user to gain access to locked mailboxes in certain areas, and Luna is accused of absconding with them.
If convicted, Luna is facing up to ten years in federal prison, prosecutors said.
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This October, U.S. Attorney Ismail Ramsey and Postal Inspector in Charge Rafael Nunez held a press conference to shine a light on a recent uptick in theft of postal keys, break-ins of postal vehicles, assaults on letter carriers and other crimes associated with interfering with the mail.
At least ten more people are suspected of mail crimes and have federal cases in the Northern District:
- Anthony Medina, 42, of American Canyon is alleged to have unlawfully possessed seven mail keys. He is also accused of possessing credit cards in the names of other individuals, images of suspected stolen mail, and access codes for an apartment complex in San Francisco.
- Robert Devon Nicholson Bell Jr., 19, a resident of Antioch, is alleged to have participated in at least two armed robberies of letter carriers in Antioch and San Francisco. He is also accused of using mail keys to steal mail from blue mailboxes. He was allegedly found in Antioch in possession of robbed postal keys, a substantial quantity of stolen mail, a fraudulent USPS ID with his picture, and stolen and counterfeit checks.
- Derek Hopson, 33, a resident of Oakland, is accused of stealing mail and postal keys in two separate incidents in June. Hopson was allegedly caught in possession of several postal keys when he was arrested at a residence in the Mission District of San Francisco. He is also accused of using a mailbox key to gain access to mailboxes at a residential complex in the Presidio of San Francisco.
- Craig Curtis Freeman and Kaylynn Nicole Ulrich are accused of breaking and entering into a carrier facility, possessing stolen mail and theft of mail.
- Stephen Hilton is accused of robbery of a mail carrier.
- Michael Derryberry and Lucas Ostolaza are each charged with two counts of robbery of a mail carrier and two counts of unlawful possession of the postal keys.
- Michael Morgan is charged with unlawful possession of mail keys, possession of stolen mail and theft of mail.
- Vo Nguyen is charged with assault on a federal employee with a deadly or dangerous weapon; attempted murder of an employee of the United States; and using, carrying, and discharging a firearm in connection with a crime of violence.