SAN ANTONIO -- A former courthouse clerk accused of stealing millions of dollars from the dead to finance a ritzy lifestyle that included six Ferraris pleaded guilty in exchange for a maximum 10-year prison term.

Prosecutors believe the scheme may have spanned more than 14 years, the San Antonio Express-News reported Wednesday.

They said Mel Spillman would fake papers naming himself temporary administrator of an estate, stamp them with stolen Bexar County seals and then use the documents to withdraw bank funds and take control of houses and other properties.

The ex-clerk, who had earned $33,000 a year from the county, lived in a $400,000 home.