HUNTINGTON, Ind. (WANE) - A man who previously admitted to bilking the Huntington County Community School Corporation out of more than $450,000 was sentenced to three years in prison Monday. Scott T. Bumgardner, 51, pleaded guilty to felony counts of corrupt business influence and theft in excess of $50,000 back in September. As part of a plea deal with Huntington County prosecutors, 17 felony counts of theft levied against Bumgardner were dropped at his sentencing Friday. A Huntington Circuit Court judge sentenced Bumgardner to three years on the corrupt business influence count and four years on theft count - but ordered those four years suspended. The judge also granted Bumgardner 51 days credit for time served in jail while his case went through legal proceedings. Scott T. Bumgardner Bumgardner was also ordered to pay the Huntington County Community Schools district $453,327 - the amount he stole - in restitution. According to Huntington Circuit Court documents, Bumgardner worked as a business manager for Huntington County Community School Corporation (HCCSC) when he reportedly used the school corporation’s money to purchase gift cards from April 2020 to October 2021. An HCCSC official told detectives Bumgardner claimed the gift cards were going to contractors who were working on a new Roanoke Elementary School building. According to court documents, the methods Bumgardner reportedly used to move the funds made it so a negative balance never showed up in the school district’s financial logs and would not have been noticed without an “in-depth investigation.” The Indiana State Board of Accounts released the results of an investigation into Bumgardner’s spending in early March. Charges against him in Huntington County followed shortly thereafter. Investigators in that report wrote that Bumgardner previously used a similar method to steal $26,000 from Marion Community Schools. Man accused of stealing $26K from Marion district before Huntington Co. allegations The release of the State Board of Accounts' report not only led to charges against Bumgardner in Huntington County, but Grant County - where Marion Community Schools is located - as well. In that case, Bumgardner was accused of using the school's money at a casino in Anderson, Indiana. He pleaded guilty to a felony count of theft in that case and received a 2 1/2-year suspended sentence. When prosecutors initially charged Bumgardner, Huntington County Community Schools officials told WANE 15 that the school district fully cooperated with the investigation and that steps were taken to prevent future misuse of the district's funds.