By: Tracie Carter
A disbarred attorney from Spring Lake Heights is facing criminal charges after allegedly embezzling over $100,000 from a deceased client’s estate over a span of several years.
According to information released by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Kathleen M. Cehelsky, 60, has been charged with second-degree misapplication of entrusted property and fourth-degree forgery and uttering false documents.
Prosecutors allege that following the death of one of her clients in 2014, Cehelsky began transferring funds from the individual’s estate account into her personal bank accounts.
Over a seven-year period, the unauthorized transfers totaled approximately $130,000. As a result, ten beneficiaries listed in the estate reportedly never received the inheritances owed to them.
In an effort to conceal the theft, Cehelsky is also accused of falsifying financial records, authorities said.
The matter was initially uncovered by the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics, which subsequently disbarred Cehelsky and referred the case to county prosecutors for further investigation.
Since being charged, officials noted that Cehelsky has returned roughly two-thirds of the stolen funds to the estate. 
She was released on her own recognizance pending further court proceedings.