MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – A Mobile man who embarked on a spate of post office break-ins last year will not have to serve more jail time, a federal judge said on Wednesday.

Robert Lee Oates pleaded guilty in March to bank fraud and possession of stolen mail.

According to court records, a Spanish Fort police officer went on December 23 to help Oates, whose car was stuck in mud on the pavement after trying to turn around. While looking for his recording in a backpack, several letters fell. Oates attempted to put the mail back in the bag, prompting the officer to investigate further.

Police searched the Volkswagen Jetta and found several glass pipes, needles and a small amount of methamphetamine. There were also two separate backpacks with lots of mail, business checks, identity documents and car titles. The stolen checks amounted to $ 28,696, according to the defendant’s written plea agreement.

The car also had burglary tools, according to the defendant’s written plea document.

Oates confessed on New Years Eve that from November until his arrest, he broke into many PO boxes in Mobile and Daphne, using a screwdriver to force locks and steal mail.

The plea deal also states that Oates used a stolen credit card from Clark’s Exxon on US 98 in Daphne to purchase gasoline and cigarettes. He used a Capital One card nine times; the loss was $ 486, according to the plea agreement.

Oates, 43, pleaded guilty in 2013 to theft related to embezzlement at a Circle K store on Knollwood Drive where he was a manager. A judge imposed a three-year conditional sentence, placed him on probation for two years and ordered him to pay more than $ 5,920.

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