Jason Pyper thought he had a winning formula, but like most robbers, it was only a matter of time before his luck ran out.

Pyper robbed the same 7-Eleven store three times last June and July before police, by chance, caught him on a fourth go-round fleeing with an accomplice and $7,000 worth of cigarettes.

"He likes to rob places ... and to give credit where credit is due, he is systematic and not too bad at it," Crown attorney Paul Cooper told court Friday.

Police linked him to the three other robberies after reviewing security video and seeing what appeared to be the same masked man doing exactly the same thing every time, Cooper said.

"His movements throughout the store are almost choreographed carbon copies," he said. "Mr. Pyper basically comes into the store masked and gloved, and with purpose and large arm motions orders the staff in the store far away from the counter ... and immediately goes for the cigarette drawer. You can almost count out the steps."

Pyper, 39, was sentenced to five years in prison in a plea bargain that saw the Crown secure convictions for all four robberies.

"To be frank, this was going to be a series of cases that was going to be remarkably difficult for the Crown to prove," Cooper told Judge Ted Lismer.

Court heard Pyper has a long time addiction to cocaine and pills and a lengthy criminal record that includes a five-year sentence for robbery in 2009. Under normal circumstances, that would mean Pyper would face a longer sentence the next time he was convicted of the same crime.

"It's a plea bargain in the truest sense of the word, a deal that, quite frankly, I am not all that enthusiastic about," Cooper said.

Pyper was charged with an additional 11 gas bar and convenience store robberies on the basis of similar security video evidence which provided brief glimpses of a wrist tattoo and distinctive footwear, Cooper said. Those charges were stayed.

"To be grounding a conviction based on someone's red shoes alone is really not something I had a lot of faith in being able to demonstrate to a court," Cooper said.