RICHMOND, Va. -- Robert Rexrode sits on his front porch every day, multiple times a day.
"Every day I'm on this porch," he said. "In the mornings, before work, in the evenings after work."
He said he started sitting on his front porch at his Brookland Park home later than usual for one sole reason: to watch after his mail carrier.
"It's after 10:00 and that's when I see her, so I don't even know when she finishes her complete route. I mean, it could be past 11:00, but I'm hoping I'm the last street she does," he said.
Rexrode considers his street fairly safe, but he says that just blocks away, he's seen reports of assault and gunshots.
Although he said the carrier hasn't brought up concerns to him directly, she has made comments about delivering late at night.
"Delivering mail by yourself, unguarded. It's not like she's a police officer, she's not packing a weapon," he said. "I'm 6'5 and 270 pounds and I don't go walking around these streets at 10:30 at night. I love this neighborhood, but I'm not going to do it."
His concerns are understandable, he says, considering the reports CBS 6 and other outlets have shared about mail theft and robberies on mail trucks.
In January, two people pleaded guilty to assaulting a letter carrier off Accommodation Street back in May 2023.
When CBS 6 reached out regarding recent break-ins in Richmond, a Postal Inspector responded that there had been three recent postal vehicle break-ins in the city:
- 4000 block of Crestwood Rd., Richmond, VA 23227 occurred on March 1.
- 2100 block of Park Ave, Richmond, VA 23220 occurred on March 2.
- 1400 block of N. Davis St., Richmond, VA 23220 occurred on March 2.
Also in January, a Postal Inspector confirmed with CBS 6 two different reports of mail being stolen from a USPS truck, both on the same day.
This week, the same inspector confirmed their team has continued to investigate reports of assaults and threats against USPS employees since the summer, the last one being reported in October.
CBS 6 submitted a Freedom of Information Act Request for additional data and statistics regarding assaults and threats.
The U.S. Postal Service said it's made over 1,200 arrests nationwide for letter carrier robberies since May 2023, claiming the reported robberies have decreased by 19% in the last five months.
Despite the trend, the fear of what could happen is still there for Frank Albergo.
"I was a letter carrier for six years," Albergo, who is now the President of the National Postal Police Association. "I was worried about dogs, you know. I mean, now letter carriers have to worry about, you know, bullets. It's very dangerous."
Albergo said their role has been shrinking over the past five years, saying Postal Police are now tasked with providing security at different postal facilities more than traveling alongside mail carriers.
"You know at one point, we almost had 3,000 police officers. We had police officers in Richmond, they've all been taken out. So, we're down to about 450. Nationwide."
Rexrode said he worries not just for his mail carrier's safety, but for all mail carrier's safety.
"She's obviously walking around with a bag full of gold to some people, right? I'm sure they're paying attention," Rexrode said.
We reached out to USPS about policies for mail carriers who may feel unsafe during their route, especially when working late hours. A spokesperson shared the following message:
"The Postal Service takes great pride in safely delivering mail to every address in America. While the goal is to finalize mail delivery during daylight hours, we cannot dismiss variables such as seasonally shorter days, weather, unscheduled absences, and high volumes that can affect delivery times. Darkness, in and of itself, is not unsafe, and all employees understand it is their responsibility to work safely and to report any unsafe conditions to their supervisors."
Depend on CBS 6 News and WTVR.com for in-depth coverage of this important local story. Anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
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