PITTSBURGH — A businessman and ex-friend of the city’s former police chief was sentenced Tuesday to three years’ probation for bribing a city official to get a $327,000 contract to put radios and computers in city police cars.

Arthur Bedway Jr., who pleaded guilty in August, was also ordered to pay a $30,000 fine. He again blamed many of his troubles on the former chief, Nathan Harper Jr., who faces sentencing in federal court next month on unrelated charges stemming from a city police slush fund and failing to file federal tax returns.

“Thirty years of friendship put me on these steps today,” Bedway said outside the U.S. District Court building after his sentencing. “Don’t trust your friends.”

Bedway, 64, contends Harper came up with the idea to rename a security firm owned by Bedway as Alpha Outfitters so the company could bid on the 2007 contract.

Bedway contends Harper received $9,000 for his role in the scheme, a claim Harper’s attorneys have repeatedly denied. Bedway made similar comments following his guilty plea, and his attorney, Martin Dietz, filed a presentence memorandum this month claiming Harper hatched the scheme and recruited Bedway to join it.

Harper’s attorney, Robert DelGreco, again denied that Thursday, even after U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon told Bedway she found his explanation “credible, albeit not excusable” in sentencing him to probation instead of 12 to 18 months in prison, as recommended by federal sentencing guidelines.

“Does the government have any evidence that what Mr. Bedway says about how he became involved in this scheme is untrue?” the judge asked Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee Karl.

“No,” Karl said.

Bedway’s attorney seized on those statements in comments after the sentencing.

“She found it credible that Bedway got involved in this behavior because Nate Harper recruited him,” Dietz said.