St. Louis Woman Sentenced for Aiding in the Robbery of the Richmond Heights Post Office

St. Louis, MO –Arielle Steed, 27, of St. Louis, MO, was sentenced to 24 months in prison for aiding and abetting the robbery of a United States Postal employee. Steed appeared in federal court today before United States District Judge Catherine D. Perry.

According to court documents, in early December 2018, Steed and co-defendant Dywane Upchurch planned to rob the U.S. Post Office in Richmond Heights located on Big Bend Boulevard. Steed was a teller at the post office and was in a relationship with Upchurch.

On December 6, 2018, after the post office closed to the public, Steed retrieved all the cash from the registers, sorted it, and placed it in a stack on the counter. At this time, there was only one other employee present at the post office. Upchurch, dressed in all black and wearing a surgical mask, entered the rear door of the post office. He was armed with a nine-millimeter semi-automatic pistol. Once inside, Upchurch brandished the firearm and forced Steed and the other employee into a restroom. Upchurch then went to the counter and stole approximately $8,800 in cash.

Upchurch pled on October 4, 2019 to felon in possession of a firearm and assaulting a U.S. Postal employee while committing a robbery. He was sentenced to 60 months in prison on January 16, 2020.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Richmond Heights Police Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Ware handled the case.

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