4 people federally charged in attack on U.S. Postal Service mail carrier in Detroit

Four people are each facing two federal charges in connection with an attack on a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier that happened in Detroit Wednesday, according to court records.

Michael Grayse, Kyron Grayse, Daquan Hare and Randy Parker-Smith are each charged with one count of assault on a federal employee and one count of discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

According to an affidavit in support of a criminal complaint filed Friday, the postal worker said he was walking on Joann Street on the city's east side when a group of people approached him and tried to rob him at gunpoint. 

The group punched and kicked the mail carrier until he was on the ground after he refused to give them anything, according to the court document, which went on to say one of the individuals, armed with a handgun, fired a single shot during the assault.

The affidavit said it appeared the bullet grazed the top of the postal worker's head, leaving a large cut and causing heavy bleeding. The group ran off after the shot was fired.

A set of car keys found at the scene by officers was later identified as belonging to a Chevrolet Malibu registered to Kyron Grayse, the affidavit said. Investigators also found a pistol roughly one block from the scene.

A girl playing on Joann Street told an investigator she saw a person she knew, later identified as Parker-Smith, running down the street with friends and that they all had guns, according to the court document. 

Law enforcement then started looking for Parker-Smith, the affidavit said. While doing so, two officers saw an individual, later identified as Michael Grayse, matching a description of one of the suspects walking out of a home on the 19000 block of Joann Street. He was detained after the officers noticed he was sweaty, covered in "vegetation/burrs" and completely out of breath, per the court document. 

Kyron Grayse, Hare and Parker-Smith were detained on the 19000 block of Joann Street after investigators knocked on the door of the residence Michael Grayse came out of, according to the affidavit. Hare allegedly had bloody knuckles on his right hand at the time.

While speaking with law enforcement, Michael Grayse said he and Kyron Grayse were visiting friends when Kyron Grayse mentioned seeing a mailman he didn't like while riding a minibike, the court document said. Kyron Grayse allegedly went on to say that he wanted to fight the postal worker.

Michael Grayse said Kyron Grayse, Parker-Smith, a person he identified as "Quan" and two others then jumped the mail carrier, per the affidavit. When asked who among the individuals he mentioned carried guns, Michael Grayse said, "All of 'em."

"If they see someone they don't like, they'll confront him, and if it comes down to it, they'll shoot him," Michael Grayse said, according to the court document.

He said in a follow-up interview with investigators that he gave the pistol found at the scene to Parker-Smith on Tuesday and that Parker-Smith went into the assault with the gun tucked in his waistband, the affidavit said.

According to the court document, Hare admitted during an interview with police to being at the scene of the incident and kicking the mail carrier multiple times. He added that Michael Grayse was at the scene and beating up the federal worker.

All four individuals are scheduled to appear in court for a detention hearing on Oct. 16, federal records show.