Octavia Redmond Murder: Third Suspect Charged in Chicago Mail Carrier Killing

Prosecutors allege Lyndell DeYoung organized the fatal attack on a letter carrier

CHICAGO — A third suspect has been charged in the July 2024 killing of on-duty U.S. mail carrier Octavia Redmond, who was shot while delivering letters in Chicago’s Far South Side, according to police and prosecutors. Lyndell DeYoung, 35, is accused of murder in what authorities describe as a planned attack that involved tracking Redmond’s route, using a stolen vehicle and destroying evidence afterward.

DeYoung was arrested Monday and ordered held pending trial during a hearing Wednesday, authorities said. A police report obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times said DeYoung gave detectives a statement after his arrest that outlined the alleged motive and execution of Redmond’s killing. He is scheduled to return to court Sept. 17.

Redmond had just delivered mail to a residence in the 12100 block of South Harvard Avenue on July 19, 2024, when she was attacked, prosecutors said. A 15-year-old fired seven shots at her, according to prosecutors. The teenager, whose name has not been released because of his age, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in juvenile court in June.

Authorities allege the teen told a grand jury that DeYoung threatened his life if he did not carry out the shooting. Prosecutors have portrayed DeYoung as the organizer of the attack, while a second defendant, Yanheim C. Edwards, allegedly drove the getaway vehicle and later set it on fire.

Edwards was charged with arson and told a grand jury that DeYoung contacted him in July 2024 about carrying out a hit on Redmond, prosecutors said. In the days before the shooting, the three allegedly stole a vehicle and used it to follow Redmond along her postal route. Prosecutors said information about her route was supplied by the person who paid for the attack.

The case details an effort to conceal the group’s movements before and after the killing. Prosecutors said the three exchanged phones ahead of the shooting, while the teen changed his shoes before Redmond was shot. Edwards allegedly used DeYoung’s mother’s car to buy lighter fluid and burn the vehicle that had been used to follow the mail carrier.

Chicago police officers stopped Edwards after the fire and seized the vehicle, prosecutors said. Investigators later relied on text messages, call records, cellphone location information and data from the vehicle’s phone plug-in system to link the defendants to the alleged plot.

Edwards also testified that DeYoung received $1,500 for the hit on the same night the vehicle was burned, according to prosecutors. Authorities have not publicly identified the person alleged to have paid for the killing.

The death of Redmond, an employee delivering mail on her assigned route, drew particular attention because of the allegation that she was deliberately targeted while performing a public-facing job. The Chicago Police Department has continued to investigate the homicide as prosecutors pursue the cases against the three accused participants.

DeYoung’s prior criminal history includes convictions and sentences connected to weapons, cannabis delivery, escape and controlled-substance cases, prosecutors said. He remains detained on the murder allegation, while the investigation into the alleged payer and any additional suspects remains ongoing.