Nelson sentenced to 25 years

Robert Allen Nelson bought two pickups totaling more than $80,000 in one day last year.

There was one problem with the transactions. Nelson wrote checks on his former employer's account to buy the vehicles. His employer was CVT Towing and Recovery in Pea Ridge.

Nelson, of Bella Vista, already had been convicted of about a dozen prior felonies, and he was released from prison about six weeks before buying the two trucks.

Nelson appeared in Benton County Circuit Court Thursday where he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for the latest crimes.

Nelson went to George Nunnally Chevrolet in Bentonville in August and bought two used pickups -- a 2011 Chevrolet Silverado 3500 valued at $46,127 and a 2012 Ford 350 valued at $36,127, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Nelson used checks belonging to CVT Towing and Recovery in Pea Ridge, where Nelson had worked.

Jessica Winters, Nelson's parole officer, reported stealing checks and purchasing vehicles with the checks was why Nelson had been in prison.

Centerton police already had taken a misdemeanor theft report in connection with the stolen checks. Nelson also wrote a $54,000 check for a pickup from a dealership in Oklahoma City. Nelson also used a forged check to buy a $37,000 truck from Clay Maxey Ford in Harrison.

Nelson, 43, pleaded guilty to two counts of theft of property, a Class B felony, and two counts of forgery in the second degree, a Class C felony.

Circuit Judge Brad Karren accepted the plea agreement and Nelson's guilty plea.

Nelson was sentenced to 25 years in prison. He'll have to serve one-fourth of the sentence before he will be eligible for parole. Nelson must abide by a suspended-sentence agreement for 30 years after his release.

Nelson also must pay $48,120 in restitution and $1,620 in court costs.

Nelson owes $22,207 in connection with three other criminal cases, according to court documents.