— A former Superior Court judge was sentenced Wednesday to two years on probation for bribery.

Arnold O. Jones II pleaded guilty in March to a federal charge of promising and paying gratuities to a public official. U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle also fined Jones $5,000 and ordered him to perform 100 hours of community service.

Federal prosecutors say Jones asked a Wayne County deputy in 2015 to obtain text messages from his wife, who the judge believed was having an affair. The judge and the deputy met in Goldsboro to exchange $100 for a disk supposedly containing the texts. Jones initially offered to give the officer "a couple cases of beer" for his help but later agreed to $100 in cash, authorities said.

A jury found Jones guilty in October of paying bribes, paying gratuities and attempted corrupt influence of an official proceeding, but Boyle threw out the verdict in February.

Jones lost his re-election bid in November after eight years on the bench.