FAIRBANKS — A Russian national who took part in a Fairbanks area mail theft ring received a suspended sentence Monday, likely avoiding deportation to his home country.

Vyacheslav Malyk, 22, of Delta Junction, will spend the next four years on probation. He will soon be released from state custody after spending the past 11 months in jail and at a halfway house.

Malyk was one of eight people who reportedly stole hundreds of pieces of mail from neighborhoods outside of the city limits in late 2008. He pleaded guilty to a single count of second-degree felony theft last year as part of a plea agreement.

Cases ranged in severity from displaced mail being found at the side of the road to stolen checks and credit cards being used to purchase thousands of dollars worth of items from local businesses. Authorities estimated losses in the range of tens of thousands of dollars. Drugs, specifically methamphetamine, were the main motive for the thefts.

In one case, Malyk reportedly altered a $1,400 check to include his real home address, then cashed the check at Wal-Mart. As a result, investigators were able to quickly track him down.

“This one event has got to be one of the stupidest things I’ve ever heard of someone doing,” Superior Court Judge Robert Downes said. “You’re a lousy criminal, Mr. Malyk.”

Downes said that he was reluctant to give a suspended sentence to Malyk but that the risk of deportation weighed heavy in his decision. Malyk’s conviction will be set aside if he completes probation.

District Attorney Mike Gray argued that because of the large number of people inconvenienced by the mail theft ring, Malyk should have received a sentence of four years with two suspended. Malyk’s attorney said any sentence longer than one year in jail likely would mean deportation back to a country where Malyk no longer has any family connections.

“I did some time in jail and I realize what I’ve done and I’m never going to do anything like that again,” said Malyk, who also claimed to have grown spiritually in the past year.

To date, seven people have pleaded guilty in connection with the mail theft ring, though Malyk received the lightest sentence. One woman who agreed to testify against her co-defendants received a one-year sentence but will not have her conviction set aside after probation. Others have received sentences as high as five years to serve in prison.

The case against one defendant is still outstanding and could soon go to trial.

Contact staff writer Chris Freiberg at 459-7545.