A former Ohio University Athletics Department employee who paid back about $31,000 he stole from the university will receive five years probation, according to a plea agreement made July 26.

Robert Andrey, 38, pleaded guilty July 26 in the Athens County Court of Common Pleas to one count of theft in office, a fourth-degree felony, for “misusing his OU purchasing card and misusing funds.” He also made restitution for the $31,075.82 he stole from the university.

The investigation found Andrey had misappropriated funds generated by parking fees on game days and falsified documents related to those funds. Andrey also forged the signature of Director of Athletics Kirby Hocutt on purchasing request documents, according to a university news release.

Investigators could not determine how he used the money, said Joe Brennan, executive director of Communications and Marketing.

He will be sentenced to five years community control Sept. 20, pending a background check to make sure he is eligible for the plea agreement, said Rob Driscoll, assistant prosecuting attorney at the Athens County Court of Common Pleas.

Andrey resigned as associate athletics director for business and internal operations on June 30, according to a news release.

An anonymous tip on the Internal Audit Office’s ethics Web site on June 6 began the investigation into Andrey’s theft, according to the news release.