Two men face up to 15 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to their roles in eight mail carrier robberies this year in North Texas, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Louis Dixon and Jerrad Coleman, both 18, were charged in April with one count each of robbery of property of the United States and conspiracy to rob and unlawfully possess property of the United States, the release said. Dixon pleaded guilty last Wednesday, and Coleman pleaded guilty Tuesday.
The men “trawled the streets” of the Dallas-Fort Worth area looking for postal service letter carriers to rob with the hopes of obtaining an Arrow Key, which is a master key used to gather mail deposited in blue collection boxes , according to court documents.
The keys are prized by mail thieves, the release said. It allows them to illicitly access mailboxes to steal mail, checks, credit cards and other sensitive information.
The robberies Dixon and Coleman pleaded guilty to occurred between January and April in Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth and Frisco.
They robbed some of the carriers at gunpoint before fleeing in vehicles and using, selling or disposing of the master keys, according to the release.
“The U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service will never cease placing employee safety as one of our top priorities,” Kai Pickens, inspector in charge at the Fort Worth Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, said in the release. “Let this serve as a warning to anyone who seeks to harm and traumatize our employees: The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will utilize every resource to find you and bring you to justice.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office as well as police departments in Arlington, Dallas, Fort Worth and Frisco assisted with the investigation.