A former receptionist at a South Whidbey veterinary office is accused of embezzling just under $1,000, according to court documents.

Prosecutors charged Mary S. Brown in Island County Superior Court Sept. 3 with theft in the second degree.

In August of 2020, one of the owners of Useless Bay Animal Clinic reported that Brown may have been misappropriating funds, according to a report by a deputy with the Island County Sheriff’s Office.

A fellow employee had noticed that Brown was handling a large number of refunds in a suspicious manner, the report states. The purchases were made on credit cards but the refunds were in cash.

The owner contacted 10 people who Brown claimed had received refunds, but none of them said they actually did, the report states. The false refunds totaled $998.

Brown allegedly admitted to a deputy that she had pocketed cash refunds from “returned” products, a separate report states. She said she was several months behind on rent and desperate.

In the clinic’s group Facebook Messenger, Brown announced that she was leaving and apologized to the community, the report states.

“I am forever disappointed in myself and heart broken,” she wrote, according to court documents.