A former employee of the Federal Trade Commission was sentenced to 18 months in prison Wednesday for stealing over $200,000 from the commission.

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Harold Hughes, a 58-year-old Arlington resident, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government money in April. Once his prison term is over, he will be subject to three years of supervised release.

Hughes was a supply clerk with the FTC between February 2009 and December 2010. During his term of employment, he used his position to make unauthorized purchases, such as laptops, DVD players and televisions. He kept some of these purchases and sold others for below retail price.

These orders were then shipped directly to FTC's headquarters in Northwest D.C., where Hughes intercepted the deliveries before they were detected.

His purchases and shipping costs totaled $218,636.21, all charged to the FTC.