San Francisco man convicted of chasing down, shooting at USPS worker

SAN FRANCISCO - A San Francisco man was sentenced to 11 years after pleading guilty to firing a firearm against a USPS employee while they were delivering mail.

On July 18, Vo Nguyen, 38, was convicted of assault on a federal employee with a deadly weapon and discharging a firearm in the course of the assault after he fired a dozen shots at a USPS mail courier as they worked.

The incident occurred in Visitacion Valley on April 1, 2023, when Nguyen exited his home and "aggressively approached" the USPS worker as he dropped mail off at his home and "acted like he wanted to fight," according to federal officials.

The courier ran away, but Nguyen chased after him. The courier then pepper-sprayed Nguyen.

Nguyen returned home, not to stay, however. Instead, he retrieved his 9-millimeter semi-automatic pistol and entered his car on the hunt for the mail courier, officials said.

Nguyen admitted to authorities that he found the mail courier and fired five to six shots. He paused for a moment, and fired around five more shots at the worker, who was running away at that point, officials said.

The courier ran in the opposite direction Nguyen was driving, so Nguyen did a U-turn and drove towards him and stopped by a parked SUV where the courier was hiding behind.

When Nguyen saw where the courier was hiding, he fired three more shots at him. Officials said Nguyen drove away briefly before returning on foot, chasing the courier. The courier then pepper-sprayed him again.

Since his arrest last year, Nguyen has remained in custody. After his 11-year prison sentence, Nguyen will serve a three-year period of supervision.