Dash and bodycam shows suspect who carjacked a mail truck slamming into Centerville police
By: A man accused of stealing a mail truck at knifepoint in Salt Lake City and then nearly hitting two people in Bountiful was arrested Monday following a standoff with police.
Wilber Castellanos Hernandez, 32, was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of aggravated robbery.
The incident started about 1 p.m. near 16 W. Northwood Ave., where police received a report of a man trying to open car doors.
About the same time, the man trying to open doors came in contact with a U.S. Postal Service worker delivering mail and threatened him with a knife and then took his truck, said Salt Lake police spokesman Brent Weisberg. The mail carrier was not injured.
"The U.S. Postal Service was able to track the vehicles' location using GPS technology in the postal vehicle. The vehicle was soon located in Davis County," according to a police booking affidavit.
The mail truck was next reported to be in a vehicle repair shop parking lot in Bountiful, where Hernandez nearly hit two people, according to Centerville police. Officers for the Centerville, Bountiful, West Bountiful police departments then attempted to stop the stolen vehicle as it drove onto a dead-end street near 950 W. Porter Lane in Centerville.
"During the attempt to stop the mail truck, it ran into a civilian truck and nearly struck a Centerville officer," Centerville police said in a statement. "The truck was eventually stopped by another Centerville officer, who blocked its forward path. Other officers were able to block the truck in from behind. The suspect began driving the truck and was ramming a Centerville police patrol (vehicle)."
But police say Hernandez refused to come out of the mail truck and continued to make threats with the knife. Following a 45-minute standoff, Hernandez was taken into custody after police fired about 14 "beanbag rounds," 40 rounds of pepper spray projectiles or "PepperBalls," and used their Tasers at least four times, according to police.
Two Centerville officers and one Bountiful police officer received minor injuries during the confrontation, including one officer whose hand was bit while helping to take Hernandez into custody.
According to court records, Hernandez was charged with forgery and theft in two cases last summer. He had two outstanding warrants at the time of his arrest on Monday that were issued in October for failing to appear in court.