Charlotte postal worker sentenced to 15 months in prison for stealing a firearm from a mailed package

On Thursday, December 14, Demarkis Deon Houston, 31, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for stealing a 9mm firearm from a mailed package

A federal judge in Charlotte, North Carolina has sentenced a 31-year-old USPS worker to 15 months in prison after authorities said he stole a 9mm firearm from a package in the mail.

Between August and September 2022, Demarkis Houston unlawfully opened and destroyed mail and removed firearms from packages

According to a press release, Demarkis Deon Houston was employed as a mail handling equipment operator at a USPS processing and distribution center in Charlotte at the time of his crimes. According to the press release, between August and September 2022, Houston “unlawfully opened and destroyed mail that was entrusted to him and removed firearms, including a 9mm firearm that was supposed to be delivered by a Postal Service carrier.”

Traffic stop led to arrest of Demarkis Houston 

On October 10, 2022, officers pulled over Houston’s vehicle for a license plate violation. During the preliminary police investigation of the traffic stop, they found a firearm in Houston’s vehicle. Further investigation led officers to determine that the firearm they recovered had been reported stolen from a mailed shipment.

Houston pleads guilty to stealing the 9mm firearm from USPS in Charlotte

On August 24, 2023, Houston pleaded guilty to the destruction or theft of mail by a postal employee.

U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell sentenced Houston to 15 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.