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SALT LAKE CITY — Two of three men who pleaded guilty to robbing a U.S. Post Office mail carrier at gunpoint were sentenced to federal prison on Thursday.
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah said the men were targeting the mail carrier's arrow key, which is used to deliver and pick up mail in mail receptacles. The men intended to steal mail and use the mail to obtain money.
Nathan Suaste, 20, of West Valley City, and Lorenzo Saavedra, 20, of Saratoga Springs, both pleaded guilty to using and carrying a firearm while committing a violent crime. Suaste was sentenced to five years in prison, and Saavedra was sentenced to seven years in prison.
The press release said Suaste recruited the other two men for the robbery. It said Saavedra was armed with a firearm provided by Suaste when he confronted the postal carrier and pulled the man from his mail truck.
"Mail carriers should never be worried about being held at gunpoint," said Trina Higgins, U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah, in the press release.
Higgins said the office will use "every resource available" to protect the mail system, its employees and the community.
The incident occurred on Aug. 19, 2022. The postal carrier reported to police that he was parked in a church parking lot eating lunch when the three men arrived, two with guns, charging documents said. The postal carrier said he handed over the arrow key and was punched in the face.
The third man charged in the incident, Exodus Matua, of Saratoga Springs, also pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 18.
According to the press release, Matua was also armed, and he punched the mail carrier and pointed the firearm at him.
A statement supporting his plea said Matua met Suaste on Snapchat, and Suaste offered him and his friend Saavedra $1,000 to participate in the robbery. Matua said in the statement that Suaste waited in his vehicle during the robbery.
Officers spoke with a witness and reviewed footage from the Glendale library at 1367 Concord Street to track where the men went and obtain video of the incident.
Later they were able to identify Suaste after someone called in a tip saying he had shown the arrow key at a McDonald's. Police were able to find Matua through a source that shared Snapchat conversations referencing the robbery; later Matua identified Saavedra.
The press release said the case is part of a program working to reduce crime and gun violence and make neighborhoods safer, called Project Safe Neighborhoods.
Initially, all three men were charged with robbery of U.S. property, using a firearm during a crime of violence, and theft of a USPS arrow key. Each pleaded guilty only to using a firearm during a violent crime and the other counts were dismissed as a result of plea deals.
Matua's plea statement said he agrees seven years in prison is a reasonable sentence.
