Man Gets 23 Years for Robbing Letter Carrier

Calling him a “career criminal,” a judge sentenced a 33-year-old North Hollywood man to 23 years in federal prison for robbing a letter carrier at knifepoint two years ago, authorities said Wednesday.

Lonnie Victor Flemming already had a string of prior convictions for manslaughter, spousal abuse, robbery and illegal drug sales, according to Pamela Prince of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Lourdes Biard sentenced Flemming in connection with the robbery of a postal employee on Sept. 2, 1997, Prince said.

At trial last year, prosecutors presented evidence that Flemming had pulled a knife on a female letter carrier in the 7300 block of Hobart Boulevard in Los Angeles and demanded that she turn over mail to him.

Later, authorities traced a check that was stolen in the robbery, which was forged and deposited into another bank account, Prince said. That led to the identification and arrest of Flemming.