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INDIANAPOLIS – A UPS driver who stole jewelry and proceeded to pawn or sell it avoided significant prison time.

Dennis Butterfield was sentenced to nearly 2.5 years of probation after pleading guilty to a theft charge. Two drug-related counts were dropped as part of a plea agreement, according to the sentencing order.

The sentence called for 910 days in the Indiana Department of Correction, but the judge suspended the bulk of it to probation. Butterfield did have three days executed at IDOC when accounting for time served and good time credit.

Part of Butterfield’s sentence called for him to undergo substance abuse evaluation and treatment. If successfully completed—and he avoids any more violations—Butterfield’s probation would essentially be cut in half.

He was also ordered to pay more than $20,000 in restitution to UPS, according to the sentencing order. He can apply for early expungement upon completion of his sentence.

Butterfield was charged in October 2021 and accused of stealing more than $100,000 in jewelry and other valuable metals. Police said he entered the UPS Distribution Facility on 86th Street, targeted high-value trailers and stole boxes of expensive jewelry after his shift.

He pawned the items at a business in Greenwood or went online to sell them to a business in Florida, police said. A detective set up a sting operation to catch Butterfield in the act, leading to his arrest and formal charges.