Letter carrier shot in holdup attempt

More than 70 local and federal law enforcement officers went door-to-door Wednesday in a North Side neighborhood looking for information about two men who shot a letter carrier in the hand during a street stick-up.

The postal worker, whose name was not released, was shot about 10:20 a.m. as he ran from two young men who accosted him and demanded money, police said.

"This is very upsetting," said Dr. Erin Buettin, a physician at UPMC Mercy, Uptown, who returned home after her child's nanny called to say she heard numerous gunshots fired outside her Taylor Avenue home in the Mexican War Streets. "This was right outside our house, where we walk our dog and play with our child."

Pittsburgh police robbery Sgt. Lavonnie Bickerstaff said letter carriers are not normally robbery targets because they rarely carry cash.

"Even in the roughest neighborhoods, the mailman usually isn't touched," Bickerstaff said. "It's rare, and this is surprising."

There have been several armed holdups in the Mexican War Streets recently, including one Saturday outside a community coffee shop on Buena Vista Street. Police don't know if those crimes, or the fatal shooting of one man and wounding of another on nearby Monterey Street earlier this month, are related to yesterday's event.

The carrier -- a 49-year-old man -- was emptying a mail relay box at the corner of Palo Alto Street and North Taylor Avenue when the assailants approached, police said. One of them pointed a gun at the carrier and demanded cash, said city police Lt. Kevin Kraus. The victim told the men he had no money, but the gunman continued to demand cash, police said.

"At that point, the postal employee decided to run because he didn't have what they wanted, and it was clear they weren't going to stop asking for it," said Ken Gornic, postal inspector for the Pittsburgh Division. "I guess he figured running was his best option."

He ran about 100 feet before the gunman began firing, police said. Neighbors reported hearing at least four shots and the letter carrier was struck once in the hand. The suspects ran down Palo Alto Street toward West Park, police said.

Paramedics took the victim to nearby Allegheny General Hospital, where he was alert and talking, Gornic said.

Gornic said the carrier has worked with the post office for 20 years. He is based in Kilbuck and works as a substitute on different routes of his choosing because he is a senior employee, Gornic said.

Neighbors who rushed to help the mailman said he asked them instead to gather up the scattered mail so that none would be lost.

Gornic said no mail was taken, and the mailman's letter bag was recovered at the scene. Investigators found shell casings on the sidewalk, and at least one bullet was lodged in the tire of a van parked nearby.

The fact that the shooting took place during the day in a residential section of the city "shows you how bold criminals are today," Kraus said.

Gornic said shooting a letter carrier is a federal crime and that suspects would be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Gornic said there have been incidents in the past where people tried to break into postal service vehicles and steal mail, but he is not aware of any armed robberies or shootings involving mail carriers locally.

El Gray, program manager for the Allegheny County violence prevention group One Vision One Life, said this and other recent shootings of innocents in the North Side should alarm people.

"These kids are armed and reckless, and they don't know how to use a gun or care who they shoot," Gray said. "Innocents are being shot. What used to be socially unacceptable and out of the question is now the norm with these kids. It's a gangland out there, and they're in charge."