PALO ALTO, CA – Police are investigating a strong-arm robbery of a United States Postal Service mail carrier that occurred Thursday in the Midtown neighborhood. The two suspects are unknown and at large.
On Thursday, May 16, 2024, at about 11:57 a.m., the Palo Alto 24-hour dispatch center received a call from a Postal Service supervisor stating that one of their mail carriers had been robbed of his postal keys about ten minutes earlier in the parking lot of the Southwood Apartments at 2850 Middlefield Road.
The investigation revealed that the victim, a man in his sixties, had been delivering mail when two men approached him and demanded his postal keys. The victim complied and turned over the keys. The men then demanded his wallet and cell phone, and when the victim refused, a fistfight ensued between all three. The suspects knocked the victim to the ground, and then fled on foot towards the parking garage. A short time later, the victim saw a black vehicle drive out of the garage at a high rate of speed to head southbound on Middlefield Road. The victim called his supervisor to report the incident.
The victim described the suspects as Hispanic males in their twenties, both about 5 feet 8 inches tall with average builds and no facial hair. The victim said they were both wearing black hooded sweatshirts with the hoods up. He said that when the suspects approached him, both had one hand reaching into their waistbands. He never saw either of them with a weapon. The victim described the vehicle he saw driving away as an older model Nissan Altima four-door sedan, with paint that looked old.
The victim sustained minor injuries to his face, rib cage, and knee. He declined medical attention at the scene.
Detectives are working with investigators from the United States Postal Inspection Service to conduct follow-up investigation. Palo Alto detectives are also investigating to see if these suspects may also be responsible for a strong-arm robbery of a mail carrier that occurred in Palo Alto in December 2023.
