A state judge lifted the theft conviction Tuesday of a man who became the focus of Japanese media in 2011 after his wife’s body was found in a California desert, and gave the man the opportunity to permanently keep the conviction off his criminal record.

Anthony Simoneau, 45, pleaded guilty in August 2011 to theft for stealing $395 worth of luggage from Nordstrom.

Then-Circuit Judge Michael Wilson sentenced Simoneau in October 2011 to five years of probation and fined him $1,580.

On Tuesday acting Circuit Judge Paul B.K. Wong set aside Simoneau’s guilty plea and granted him a three-year period of deferral. If Simoneau stays out of trouble for the three years, the court will permanently set aside the guilty plea. If he does get into trouble, the court will accept the plea and sentence Simoneau for second-degree theft.

Wong also ordered Simoneau to pay the remainder of his previous fine.

Defense lawyer Lesley Maloian said Simoneau has paid all put $465 of it.

Simoneau told Wong that the theft conviction has made it difficult for him to maintain employment. He said that ever since his arrest, he has been hounded by Japanese media.

In 2007 the body of Simoneau’s wife, Fumiko Simoneau, was found in a shallow grave in a desert near San Diego. It was not until 2011 that authorities identified the body using DNA from her family in Japan. Simoneau had never reported his wife missing. No one has been charged in Fumiko Simoneau’s death.