A former Florida corrections officer has pleaded guilty to embezzlement and will cooperate with the federal government in its investigation of current and former officers. Bryan Griffis, who managed a center that recycles prison trash, pleaded guilty Tuesday to embezzling from the center. He also pleaded guilty in December 2004 for his role in an anabolic steroid ring in which he sold the drugs to fellow officers and others.

Griffis faces up to five years on each of the two charges, but his attorney Terry Silverman said he hopes Griffis will avoid prison time. At the recycling facility, employees were responsible for collecting scrap metal from other prisons and sell it. The money was supposed to be returned to the Department of Corrections.

According to court documents, Griffis told two employees to sell the scrap material and split the money with him. Griffis is one of six former officers to plead guilty in the steroid investigation. None of the four who were sentenced so far have gotten prison time. Griffis' wife, Tamara, was indicted in November on four counts of distributing prescription drugs. Her trial is set for March, but Silverman said Tuesday he wants to work out a plea agreement.