Arrest made after Bronx postal worker pistol-whipped, $100K stolen from post office
CASTLE HILL, Bronx (WABC) -- A man has been arrested after a 56-year-old U.S. Postal worker was pistol whipped and forced to open a Bronx post office to a man who stole more than $100,000 in cash and blank money orders earlier this month.
Elhorin Yisreal, 44, was arrested Thursday and was scheduled to appear in federal court in Manhattan on Friday.
Yisreal is charged with one count of Hobbs Act robbery, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of brandishing a firearm, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison.
The incident happened Sept. 6 as the victim was opening the Castle Hill Post Office on Castle Hill Avenue.
Authorities say the victim was knocked to the ground and hit over the head with a gun before the man demanded she open the gate.
The suspect, dressed in all black and wearing a full facemask, ran inside the post office and made off with, according to sources, $112,000 in cash, 10 boxes of money orders, and a machine used to print those money orders.
He fled in the scene in a white minivan.
The postal employee was treated on-scene by EMS and was not seriously injured.
The victim's husband was walking back to his car after having dropped her off when his wife was assaulted, and he rush to her aid.
He was also held at gunpoint but was not injured.
"As alleged, Elhorin Yisreal brazenly robbed a Bronx post office in broad daylight, endangering the lives of a post office employee and her husband in the process," said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. "Yisreal's alleged actions show his disregard for the rule of law, and I commend our law enforcement partners for working with this Office to swiftly identify and apprehend Yisreal."
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