A Wellsville woman was sentenced Monday to 27 months in federal prison for forging more than $256,000 in checks drawn on her employer.

In an earlier plea, Catherine Zickel, 46, admitted that the crimes occurred between Oct. 31, 2003, and Aug. 28, 2006. She was a bookkeeper at the time for Dunco Inc., doing business as Niehoff Dunco Heating and Cooling, and Niehoff Heating & Air Conditioning in Lawrence. Zickel, who was charged in U.S. District Court with one count of mail fraud, has agreed to pay $256,353 in restitution.

Federal prosecutors said that on numerous occasions Zickel forged an owner’s signature on company checks to pay her personal credit card bills. She entered false billing information in the accounts payable records to conceal the forgeries, prosecutors said.

Zickel’s prison term will be followed by three years of supervised released, U.S. District Judge Kathryn Vratil ruled.