A Florida man has been sentenced to over 15 years in prison for violently assaulting a mail carrier and brandishing a deadly firearm.
According to court records, the incident occurred in June 2021 when the victim, a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) mail carrier, was making her regular deliveries in the Florida City area.
As she approached a townhouse to drop off a package, the resident, identified as 43-year-old Charlie Holley, began yelling at her from a second-story window. Holley demanded that the carrier open the package, but she informed him that she was not permitted to do so.
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Enraged by the carrier’s response, Holley’s demeanor quickly turned hostile.
He shouted, “Do you think I’m f—— playing with you?” and proceeded to lift a 45-caliber, semi-automatic rifle, pointing it directly at the unsuspecting mail carrier. Fearing for her life, the carrier fled to her postal truck, hearing a bullet strike the vehicle as she drove away.
Immediately after the carrier’s 911 call, law enforcement officers rushed to Holley’s residence, where he had barricaded himself inside.
After a tense standoff lasting nearly two hours, Holley eventually surrendered to the authorities. A search of the property revealed the black rifle used in the attack, along with several loaded magazines and a bullet fragment recovered from the postal truck.
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Holley was subsequently charged with a range of federal offenses, including forcibly assaulting a federal employee, brandishing and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of ammunition by a convicted felon.
Following a federal jury trial, he was convicted on all counts and sentenced to an impressive 192 months (16 years) in prison by U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz II.
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