Indictment: Toms River Man Kept Money Paid For Monmouth Cemetery Plots

A Toms River man has been indicted in Monmouth County on charges he took money from a church by withholding payments made on cemetery plots and other services, according to court documents.

Stephen Devlin, 55, of Toms River, was indicted Monday by a Monmouth County grand jury on three counts of theft by unlawful taking, according to the documents.

Starting as early as August 2007, Devlin, the manager of Mount Calvary Cemetery in Asbury Park, took payments from families for foundation services for headstones, but withheld the money from Church of the Holy Spirit, which owns the cemetery, according to the indictment.

He also kept money paid for cemetery plots and mausoleum crypts, and money paid for engraving services on crypts and monuments in the cemetery, according to the indictment.

The thefts continued through August 2011; the total amount stolen is unclear but each count is third-degree, for property in excess of $500 but less than $75,000. If convicted, Devlin faces three to five years in prison on each count.