COLUMBUS, Ohio — Two central Ohio men pleaded guilty Friday to four armed robberies of U.S. Postal carriers, according to U.S. Attorney Kenneth Parker.
Theirno Bah, 20, of Columbus, and Cameron Newton, 20, of Westerville, were charged in four armed robberies against Postal workers between late 2022 and mid-2023.
The attorney's office said that as part of Bah’s plea, the parties are recommending a sentence of 20 to 25 years in prison. Newton faces a minimum of 20 years and up to life in prison.
According to Bah’s plea agreement, he used firearms and robbed Postal carriers of their U.S. Postal Service keys on four occasions between December 2022 and May 2023. Newton aided and abetted the aggravated robberies of mail and the use of a firearm during the crimes.
Bah and Newton worked with others to steal service keys, which are then used to steal mail from USPS receptacles, the attorney's office said. Individuals then “cook” the mail by washing personal and business checks and other financial instruments to reflect new names and new payment amounts. The defendants would then recruit third parties to deposit the newly washed checks in their own accounts and split the profit.
Dec. 29, 2022 German Village robbery:
- Bah pointed handgun at victims stomach and demanded his vehicle and service keys
- Newton, who was on probation at the time, recruited two juveniles to assist with the robbery
Jan. 3, 2023 East Columbus Street robbery:
- Bah pushed mail carrier into her truck and pushed a gun to her side
- Bah stole mail carrier's keys
- Newton provided surveillance using the cover of making DoorDash deliveries
Jan. 3, 2023 Whitehall robbery:
- Bah approached victim and pushed gun to her stomach, then stole her personal car keys and USPS keys
- Newton again provided surveillance from nearby
May 11, 2023 West Broad Street robbery:
- Bah approached postal worker at the Post Office Retail Store while she was on break, asked for her keys
- When she asked, "What keys?,” Bah pistol-whipped her in the head with his gun
- Bah forcibly accompanied the victim into the post office to retrieve her service keys
- Newton obtained another firearm for this robbery and picked up Bah and others afterward. He then paid them all several hundred dollars through CashApp
On May 18, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Newton’s residence and discovered $22,000 in cash, hundreds of washed and altered checks, two Postal keys and hundreds of pieces of stolen mail.
The two men are the latest of at least a dozen defendants charged in the Southern District of Ohio in 2022 and 2023 with crimes related to Postal robberies.