A woman pleaded guilty Monday morning to pilfering more than $75,000 from the ophthalmology office where she worked, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced on Monday.

Sheryl Ward, 35, of South Amboy, pleaded guilty to a charge of second-degree theft before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Ellen Torregrossa-O’Connor.

In pleading guilty, Ward admitted that between August 2016 and January 2018, she processed the fraudulent returns of more than $75,000 worth of merchandise to her ophthalmologist employer. She did so by creating falsified credit card returns that were directly deposited into her personal bank account. Ward worked in the contact lens department.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, the state will recommend a sentence of five years in prison when she returns for sentencing on July 26, 2019.

— Edited press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office