JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Last week, two postal workers were robbed at gunpoint in two different neighborhoods on the same day. The incidents happened last week -- one in Harborview, the other on the Westside.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
Neighbors from both areas say they’ve never seen this happen before. The incident report reveals one of the postal workers was robbed at a cluster unit of mailboxes in broad daylight.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
“I’ve been here 28 years, 27 years, and we’ve never had any issues in this neighborhood,” neighbor Janice Byrd said. “It’s always been quiet just like it is now.”
Last Tuesday, police were in Janice Byrd’s neighborhood investigating an armed robbery to a postal worker.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service says the first incident happened on Alfred Mill Avenue at 11:25 a.m. and the second one happened around noon about 15 miles south on Ricker Road.
In an emailed statement, the inspection service said, “it is unknown if the robberies are related.” However, the suspect in both incidents is described as a tall, thin man wearing a mask and black clothing.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office incident report had limited information, but it stated the postal worker said: “she believed if she did not cooperate she would be shot and was in fear for her life.”
Sam Shive said he spoke with the postal worker in this report and then called 911.
“She said she had the mailbox open, he come up to the truck, he grabbed something out of the truck and took off,” Shive said.
The USPIS statement also said, “USPS employee safety is one of the core missions.” They added, “Luckily neither employee was physically harmed during the armed robberies…”
Shive said he’s not worried about the crime, but he hopes the suspect is found.
“Is it bad? Yea,” Shive said. “Can we do anything about it? We got to put the bad guys in jail. But first, we got to catch the bad guys.”
The report revealed the suspect stole the keys to the mailbox at Ricker Rd.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Police are still investigating. If you have any information, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said to contact them at 1-877-876-2455.
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.