New Jersey woman whose body found hidden in father's home never reported missing

A young New Jersey woman whose remains were recently discovered inside her family's home was never reported missing, baffling authorities who say her father concealed the body for more than three years.

Police said 57-year-old Dennis Adler hid his 23-year-old daughter's remains in his former house in Keansburg, N.J., at one point moving the body into a crawl space, where it was discovered this week by a cleaning crew, authorities said Thursday.

Adler made an initial appearance in state Superior Court in Monmouth County to face a charge of disturbing human remains. He didn't enter a plea and was held on $100,000 bail.

Police were called to Adler's former home in Keansburg on Tuesday after a cleaning service discovered the remains. Dental records confirmed the remains were those of Kimberly Adler. It could take a few weeks to receive the results of an autopsy to determine the cause her death.

The county prosecutor's office said Kimberly Adler was likely 23 when she died. She was never reported missing.

According to the arrest warrant, Adler is accused of "repeatedly moving, disturbing and concealing the remains of K.A. on diverse dates beginning on 8/10/2008."

Prosecutors would not provide further details on the investigation.

County property records describe Adler as an "unremarried widower" at the time that the property was sold in June 2008 and said his wife died in April 2007. The couple had bought the property, which includes several buildings, in 1989.

The Asbury Park Press reported that court records show Kimberly Adler pleaded guilty to an oxycodone possession charge in May 2008. On Sept. 26, 2008, she failed to appear in a New Jersey court for sentencing and a bench warrant was issued for her arrest, according to the newspaper.

John Sheehan, who is listed as the buyer of the property, did not immediately return a telephone message left on Thursday.

Some residents of a rooming house in Keansburg listed on the warrant as Adler's last known address said they hadn't seen him in about a year. Neighbors on the street of modest one-story homes where Kimberly Adler's body was found didn't want to comment on the discovery or said they didn't know the house's former owner.

A pile of debris lay in back of the house on Thursday, while out front, television news trucks were gathered.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.