A Keansburg man who concealed the death of his daughter and her skeletal remains, moving them four times over the years and leaving them in his crawl space, was indicted by a grand jury in Freehold today.
Dennis Adler, 57, of Keansburg, was formally charged with disturbing human remains, hindering prosecution and obstructing the administration of justice, Acting Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced today.
If convicted on the charges, Adler could face more than 15 years in prison. He is being held at the Monmouth County Correctional Facility on $100,000 bail, no ten percent option.
On April 3, workers hired to clean out a house in preparation for foreclosure discovered human skeletal remains beneath a crawl space at 45A Campview Place in Keansburg, near Beachway Avenue.
Keansburg Police were contacted, and a subsequent investigation by the local police and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office revealed the identity of the remains as those of Kimberly Adler, born on December 10, 1984, who had formerly lived at 45 Campview Place. Police believe that she died in the summer of 2008.
The cause and manner of Kimberly Adler’s death remain undetermined.
The police investigation also alleges that after his daughter died, Dennis Adler, moved her remains to four separate locations over the course of the past four years.
Police say Dennis Adler hid her death from other family members and friends who believed her to be missing and gave false information regarding his daughter’s whereabouts to law enforcement officers and officials on several occasions in an apparent effort to prevent his actions from being detected by law enforcement.
Dennis Adler was arrested in connection to the skeletal remains on April 4 and is being held at at the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in lieu of bail set at $100,000 with no 10% option.
If convicted of disturbing human remains, a second-degree crime, Adler faces up to 10 years’ imprisonment. The third-degree crime of hindering prosecution carries a potential sentence of up to 5 years’ imprisonment, and obstructing the administration of justice, a fourth-degree crime, carries a potential sentence of up to 18 months’ imprisonment.
The case is assigned to Assistant Prosecutor Ellyn Rajfer of the Office’s Trial Division. Dennis Adler is represented by John J. Perrone, Esq., of Long Branch.
