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A 'lazy' mailman who stashed nearly 45,000 undelivered letters in his dead mother's basement and a storage unit has been jailed.

William Morse, of Dawson Springs, Kentucky, faces six months behind bars followed by a further six months home detention.

He has also been ordered to pay nearly $15,000 in restitution to residents and business affected by his crime.

The 34-year-old's deception was uncovered when the owner of the storage facility noticed the US Postal logo on several crates and notified authorities.

"He wanted to speed up his route," Capt. Craig Patterson told USA Today. "I think he was lazy."

Morse's lawyer contended that he was going through a divorce and had to pick his kids up from school causing him to store the mail he was unable to deliver.