Mail Carrier Arrested, Charged With Committing Rape on the Job

A veteran postman who allegedly raped a woman along his delivery route and then continued on his rounds has been arrested, El Monte police said Tuesday.

John D. Matthews, 51, who has been a post office employee for more than 20 years, delivered mail Saturday morning at a business in the Flair Industrial Park area, Detective Tom Hunt said.

Although the office on Telstar Avenue was closed, the door was unlocked because the manager, a 30-year-old Rowland Heights woman, had come in to do some extra work, Hunt said.

After checking to make sure she was alone, Matthews allegedly raped the woman, the detective said.

“He walked out and just finished his route,” Hunt said. “We’ve never heard of anything like that.”

Because it was a Saturday, however, investigators were unable to determine which mail carrier had been on duty. They waited until Monday, and when Matthews came through Flair Industrial Park again, he was arrested.

A postal inspector from the El Monte office was called to the scene and took charge of Matthews’ delivery vehicle and the mail. Matthews, of Baldwin Park, was released from the El Monte Jail after posting a $30,000 bond.