Delco Trio Charged With Assaulting Mail Carrier: PA Attorney General

Three Delaware County men have been arrested and charged in connection with a Jan. 30, 2016 attack on a Delaware County mail carrier, the state's Attorney General said Friday.

According to Pennsylvania Attorney General Bruce Beemer, Mark Timothy White, 29, of Ridley Park's Holmes area; Derek Alonzo Dawson, 23, of Ridley Park; and Joseph Douglas Marion, 20, Morton, have all been charged with one count each of attempted aggravated assault, attempted aggravated assault/criminal conspiracy, simple assault, simple assault/criminal conspiracy, harassment and disorderly conduct.

The AG's office said all suspects have been remanded to the Delaware County Prison in lieu of $500,000 bail each. Their preliminary hearings are tentatively scheduled for Oct. 27, the AG's office said.

"This was a brutal attack on a public servant performing his official duties," Beemer said. "Our office is fully committed to ensuring the individuals who carried out this attack are held responsible for their actions."

According to the AG's office, the attacked occurred on Jan. 20 on Harding Avenue in Morton Borough when the driver of a Nissan vehicle pulled up and stopped directly in front of the mail carrier's vehicle. As the postal carrier exited to deliver mail to residences in the area, the driver of the Nissan started a confrontation, asking why the postal carrier was blocking the road and yelled "this is my hood," the AG's office said.

When the carrier attempted to walk past one of the suspects, mail was slapped out of his hand, the AG's office said. As as he bent over to pick up the mail, two other individuals from the Nissan joined in on the assault as the postal carrier was punched and kicked on the ground, causing the carrier to suffer injuries to his head, back and arms as he was punched more than 10 times, the AG's office said.

The case was referred to the Office of Attorney General by the Delaware County District Attorney's Office and the arrests were the result of an investigation by the Office of Attorney General's Bureau of Criminal Investigations, the AG's office said.

Beemer thanked the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Morton Police Department for their work on the investigation.

Deputy Attorney General Noel Ann DeSantis of the Office of Attorney General's Criminal Prosecutions Section is prosecuting the case, the AG's office said.

Images via Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office