PACOIMA : Man Held in Theft From Letter Carrier

Postal inspectors arrested a 31-year-old Pacoima resident Friday on suspicion of robbing a mail carrier at gunpoint, authorities said.

Freddie Lee Brown was arrested without incident at noon at his home on the 12500 block of Van Nuys Boulevard, according to the Postal Inspection Service.

On New Year’s Eve, Brown pointed a gun at the mail carrier, whose name was not released, and told her to drop her mail, Postal Inspector Robert Gatz said. When an accomplice appeared at Brown’s side, the carrier put down the mail, which included several welfare checks. The men picked up the mail and fled, Gatz said.

The development Friday stemmed from the arrest Jan. 7 of Charlotte Brown, a Pacoima resident who is not related to Freddie Lee Brown, after she tried to cash one of the stolen checks at a check-cashing agency. That led investigators to Freddie Lee Brown, authorities said.

Gatz said Freddie Lee Brown is being held without bail. If convicted, Brown faces 30 years in prison for the robbery near an apartment complex on Pierce Street in Pacoima. The maximum penalty for robbery is 25 years.