3 Face Arraignment in Post Office Robbery

A postal clerk and two accomplices were scheduled to be arraigned in U.S. District Court today on charges that the clerk helped the other two stage an armed robbery at a North Hollywood post office, taking $25,000 accumulated through heavy sales of the new 4-cent stamp, a postal inspector said.

The robbery took place about 5 p.m. Monday after the Victory Center Station at 6535 Lankershim Blvd. had closed to the public, Postal Inspector Michael Ahern said. The money was recovered later from a nearby apartment building, where it was hidden near the swimming pool, Ahern said.

Reginald Roberts, 19, and James Jerome Williams, 21, both of Los Angeles, were expected to be charged with armed robbery of a post office. Postal clerk Louisiana Owens, 44, also of Los Angeles, will be charged with aiding them, Ahern said.

All three face maximum sentences of 25 years in a federal penitentiary if convicted. They were being held in a federal lockup facility Wednesday pending arraignment.

Owens, a 13-year employee of the Postal Service, opened the back door for the two men, according to Los Angeles Police Detective Richard Jamieson. She was arrested at her residence later that day.

Police were led to Roberts and Williams by witnesses who saw them flee the post office on foot, Jamieson said.

The robbers wore ski masks and used a toy pistol and a .25-caliber revolver, Jamieson said. Five employees were present, but there were no injuries.

The robbers allegedly arrived in a 1990 Ford Ranger but apparently “chose not to get in the truck because of witnesses and police,” Jamieson said. The vehicle was impounded.

Hours after their arrests, Jamieson said, Williams’ mother phoned police to report that her son and his friend had been abducted in their truck. The detective said he suspected the woman’s call was a ploy to protect her son.