A Brookline man has been indicted in federal court on charges of attempting to kill a letter carrier with a baseball bat last month in what police said was an unprovoked attack in Mt. Lebanon.
The grand jury named Matthew Harrison, 43, who had already been facing attempted murder and assault charges in state court.
The grand jury on Tuesday handed up an indictment on two counts of attempted murder and assault of a U.S. employee.
The indictment contains almost no detail.
But the state court charges say Harrison attacked the mailman on May 28 while he was on his route in Mt. Lebanon, where he'd been delivering mail for 25 years.
The victim said he was on his route when Harrison, whom he had known from the neighborhood, hit him in the head from behind with a bat. He told police he'd never had problems with Harrison before.
Mt. Lebanon police were initially called to Dorchester Avenue for a report of a mailman assaulted on Castlegate Avenue.
Officers found the victim covered in blood with a broken baseball bat nearby.
Witnesses said they had seen someone punching the mailman in his truck. The attacker, wearing no shirt and covered in blood, walked down Dorchester toward Midland Street. Harrison lives on Dorchester.
Harrison retreated into his home and barricaded himself inside.
Police set up a perimeter and took Harrison into custody after a standoff lasting several hours.
The mailman's wrists had been broken in the assault and he had large lacerations on his arms and bruises on his back. He was treated at Mercy Hospital.
First Published: June 22, 2022, 6:51 p.m.