He didn’t just deliver the mail — he stole some of it

He didn’t just deliver the mail, he helped himself to some of it.

Former mail carrier James N. Stephenson of Hoxie pleaded guilty on Friday in federal court to one count of mail theft, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said in a prepared statement.

Stephenson, 25, admitted that he stole mail containing cash, gift cards and prepaid debit cards while as a mail carrier for the U.S. Post Office. He said he looked for birthday and anniversary cards that were likely to contain items of value.

Sentencing is set for Sept. 14. Both the prosecution and the defense attorney have agreed to recommend a sentence of a year and a day in federal prison, Beall said.

This story was originally published June 16, 2017 at 4:52 PM with the headline "He didn’t just deliver the mail — he stole some of it."