A Postal Service mail carrier was shot Tuesday while delivering mail in the Kilbourn Park neighborhood on the Northwest Side, according to authorities.

Two armed attackers approached the 52-year-old male carrier in the 3200 block of North Kildare Avenue around 3:30 p.m., police said. They tried to take the man’s belongings and one attacker fired a gun, striking the victim in the leg, police said.

A Postal Service spokesperson confirmed the victim was a USPS mail carrier Tuesday afternoon. The agency was already investigating the shooting, but the Postal Service did not have an update on the mail carrier’s condition, the spokesperson said.

The victim was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in critical condition, but the postal spokesperson said his condition stabilized in the evening.

Officers had not arrested any suspects, and detectives are investigating, police said.

Postal inspectors could be seen going door to door near the scene of the shooting on Tuesday evening.

Standing outside the taped-off crime scene, Ald. Ruth Cruz, 30th, told reporters that small children lived on the block. “So it makes me not only sad, but also worries me,” she said. “Other neighbors have shared some concerns about what they have experienced in the neighborhood recently.”

The City Council member had not heard about neighbors’ fears about crime until after Tuesday’s shooting, she said. She encouraged residents to report crimes and concerns to police and her office. She also highlighted efforts to fight crime through block clubs and community groups.

A string of robberies targeting mail carriers last winter left many carriers traumatized and fearful for their lives, the head of the Chicago branch of the National Association of Letter Carriers told the Tribune in February.

[ Postal carriers ‘traumatized’ after recent armed robberies and other crimes, says head of union ]

“It’s a traumatizing experience to have a gun pulled at you in the performance of your duties while servicing the public,” said Elise Foster, president of the union’s Branch 11. “They’re scared and some don’t even want to return back to work.”

Foster couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday.

The Postal Inspection Service offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the attackers and posted video of the a stolen white Kia sedan speeding away from the scene. Anyone with information is asked to call 877-876-2455.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com

Originally Published: Aug 01, 2023 at 5:28 pm