IF the father chose to accept payments, he would be being generously stupid.Because there is no debt without credit.
Unless you are talking about token amount, credit is returned through time with multiple "giving money to creditor" events.
How long would it take to pay off what a young man could make in 2.5 years? If he gave every cent that he made, 2.5 years would be gone without being able to buy a lachet for his sandals. Why trust someone who is already a thief to honor that?