FORT PIERCE — A federal judge has ordered three St. Lucie County men to serve prison terms for crimes related to a string of robberies of letter carriers for the U.S. Postal Service in which keys to open mail receptacles were stolen, court records show.
Fort Pierce resident Jamal Trayvon Brown Weathers, 23, and co-defendants Bernard Jerome Davis III, 20, and Jalen Dennis Elliot, 19, both of Port St. Lucie, were accused in a federal indictment of robbing at least six mail carriers across St. Lucie, Brevard, Orange and Miami-Dade counties, from November 2022 to October 2023, according to the Southern District of Florida U.S. Attorney's Office.
“The defendants brazenly terrorized loyal public servants, U.S. Postal Service letter carriers working in Florida, at gunpoint for their postal keys with the intent to steal mail from collection boxes,” U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe said in a prepared statement . “Armed assaults on letter carriers negatively impact our entire community, which relies on the U.S. Postal Service for the safe delivery of the mail.”
Stolen in the cases were arrow keys that typically allow U.S. Postal Service employees to open mail receptacles in a geographic area to deliver and collect mail.
Investigators have reported that criminals target the keys to steal mail , searching for checks, cash and money orders.
On Oct. 7, U.S. District Court Judge K. Michael Moore at the federal courthouse in Fort Pierce ordered Davis to prison for 16 years followed by three years of supervised release, after he pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery; two counts of armed Postal/U.S. property robbery; one count of brandishing a firearm during and in furtherance of a crime of violence; attempted Hobbs Act robbery; and Hobbs Act robbery.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice the Hobbs Act "prohibits actual or attempted robbery or extortion affecting interstate or foreign commerce."
Elliott, who also appeared before Moore, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery and Hobbs Act robbery and was sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, court records show.
On Oct. 24, Brown Weathers pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery; armed Postal/U.S. property robbery; and brandishing a firearm during and in furtherance of a crime of violence. Moore ordered Brown Weathers to serve 13 ½ years with three years of supervision upon release, according to court filings.
“The prison sentences handed down to these defendants should serve as a reminder that violent acts committed against U.S. Postal Service employees providing service to the community will not be tolerated,” said Juan A. Vargas , inspector in charge of the Miami-based U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, along with our law enforcement partners, will ensure that those committing these acts will be pursued and justly punished for their crimes.”
Robbed at gunpoint
Multiple agencies, including police in Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie, and the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office, along with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service launched an investigation after the armed robbery of a letter carrier in Port St. Lucie on Nov. 19, 2022.
Surveillance footage showing the Ford Focus reportedly used in the incident lead investigators to a residence in Fort Pierce where the vehicle was registered, court filings show.
A woman there said she’d been away, but the vehicle was left with her children, one of whom is Brown Weathers. The letter carrier identified Brown Weathers after being presented a photo array.
On May 12, 2023, Brown Weathers and Davis robbed two letter carriers at gunpoint in Melbourne and fled the scene in a rented Nissan Altima, according to federal records.
Records show on Aug. 1, 2023, a postal carrier got away from what the carrier thought was about to be an armed robbery in St. Lucie County. Two additional arrow key robberies were reported two months later on Oct. 11, and Oct. 21, in Fort Pierce and Miami Beach, respectively.
On Oct. 22, 2023, investigators reported finding a BMW used in a Miami Beach robbery in St. Lucie County, after a chase involving St. Lucie County Sheriff’s deputies, including an agency helicopter. Elliot drove, while Davis was a passenger, records show.
Video from the helicopter showed Davis place something under a portable toilet in a parking lot where he was apprehended. Investigators reported finding an arrow key stolen in Fort Pierce, as well as another key.
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Melissa E. Holsman is the legal affairs reporter for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers and is writer and co-host of " Uncertain Terms ," a true-crime podcast. Reach her at melissa.holsman@tcpalm.com . If you are a subscriber, thank you. If not, become a subscriber to get the latest local news on the Treasure Coast.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Three St. Lucie County men ordered to prison for armed robbery of USPS letter carriers
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