FREEHOLD – The former executive director of the Asbury Park Housing Authority, who is also the ex-mayor of Lawrence Township, has been indicted on 38 counts of official misconduct and other charges, Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni announced Monday.

An investigation conducted by the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office determined that while Mark W. Holmes, Sr. was serving as the executive director of the Asbury Park Housing Authority, he stole more than $75,000 by diverting state grant funds, collecting reimbursements for unauthorized meals, and double-dipping on per diem payments when traveling, the prosecutor's office said.

Holmes, now 54, lives in Lawrence Township where he previously served as mayor and councilman. He was the executive director of the housing authority between Dec. 2008 and June 2011. Prior to that, Holmes was the organization's deputy director.

Just months before assuming the role as executive director, Holmes applied for and received a $99,897 grant award from the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development for Literacy Skills Training Grant that was intended to provide training in computers and other marketable skills for Asbury Park public housing residents, the prosecutor's office said.

Between November 2008 and August 2009, Holmes transferred more than $58,000 of grant funding from the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development – intended to provide training in computers and other marketable skills for Asbury Park public housing residents – to an organization he created, called the APHA Community Development Corporation, to fund a $50,000 salary increase for himself, without APHA Board approval, rather than use the money for training purposes, the prosecutor's office said...