CHICAGO – A man accused of robbing a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier has been sentenced to four years in prison. Michael Valentine, 38, was concurrently jailed for four years for using the postman’s master key to steal mail in Rogers Park.
Postmasters, also known as ‘arrow keys’, give postal workers access to apartment buildings and mailbox systems.
Police initially arrested Valentine in the 6700 block of North Lakewood on Dec. 6, 2023, after receiving a call about a burglary in progress. Police said they found bulk mail addressed to several people in Valentine’s canvas bag and a postal service master key about 15 feet from where they held him.
Investigators determined that the key had been taken from a postman during a robbery weeks earlier.
Prosecutors only charged Valentine with burglary and possession of burglary tools, but detectives continued to investigate the robbery. That investigation led them right back to Valentine.
Earlier this year, prosecutors filed theft charges against Valentine, saying he was the robber who took the master key from a 62-year-old postal worker in the 10300 block of South Calumet last November.
Valentine approached her with his hands in his pockets and forcibly demanded her work keys, according to paperwork filed by prosecutors. The postman handed over her keys, tied herself to her work truck and locked herself in. Prosecutors say he tried to open the truck and bang on the doors, but eventually ran away. The postman identified him months later in a photo series.
Court records show Valentine resolved both cases by pleading guilty to theft and burglary. Valentine was given a four-year prison sentence by Judge Aleksandra Gillespie, which can be reduced to two years with good behavior. After receiving credit for time spent on an ankle monitor while awaiting trial, he is expected to be released on February 27, 2026.
Another conviction
A remarkably prolific mail thief who faced 20 separate counts of burglary and identity theft for allegedly stealing mail downtown and across the North Side has been given a nine-year prison sentence.
Jonathan Minter, 36, struck a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to five counts of burglary and two counts of identity theft, court records show. The deal resulted in the dismissal of all other cases.
Prosecutors accused him of committing similar crimes in the 5900 block of North Lincoln, the 5800 block of North Clark, the 1100 block of West Ardmore, the 5600 block of North Broadway, the 5700 block of North Winthrop and the 3800 block of North. Fremont.
Last November, Minter allegedly used an arrow key or other device to bypass locks and remove mail and property from a building in the 4600 block of West Lawrence. A few days later we shared a video of that incident with you:
On Dec. 16, he struck again, stealing mail from the apartments at 320 North Michigan, prosecutors alleged. On Dec. 27, he allegedly used a U.S. Postal Service master key to enter a package room at a residence at 1801 South Michigan and attempted to steal packages, according to another complaint.
Prosecutors said he and an accomplice used Postal Service master keys four times between July and September last year to steal mail from an apartment building in the 800 block of South Wells.
While many of those cases were pending, Minter stopped showing up for court and allegedly spent some of his free time stealing more mail and using some of his victims’ credit cards and IDs to enjoy hotel accommodations at the Ritz-Carlton Chicago Hotel and a Homewood Suites near the Magnificent Mile.
Judge Ursula Walowski imposed a two-year prison sentence on him for two counts of identity theft. Judge William Gamboney gave him seven years for five burglary cases. The sentences will be served consecutively, giving him an effective sentence of nine years. This is halved for good behavior.
