Brenda Tepler, 64, was sentenced on Wednesday to a year in jail, all suspended, and two years of supervised probation for stealing a Target gift card mailed to the post office and using it at the Minot Target store during the time she was employed at the Minot Post Office.

Court records show that Tepler pleaded guilty to one Class C felony charge of theft. The state dropped three other Class C felony theft charges against her under the terms of a plea deal.

Tepler was also ordered to stay away from Target and to pay court costs. Restitution in the case is reserved for 90 days.

According to the probable cause affidavit filed with the court, the Postal Service had received numerous complaints about missing mail from customers in the Minot Air Force Base and Minot area. They had received one report about illegal use of a Target gift card that had been mailed to someone in the area. In response to the complaints, the U.S. Postal Service OIG conducted “integrity testing” of mail sent to the post office, by sending a test piece of mail containing a Target gift card to an address at Minot Air Force Base. The test piece of mail had a return address linked to the OIG. The gift card was sent on Jan. 13, 2018 and used by Tepler at the Minot Target store on July 13, 2018.

Tepler had been the lead mail processing clerk at the post office until she retired on Aug. 20, 2018. She retired while she was under criminal investigation.