BRICK TWP. COUPLE ARRAIGNED IN DEATH OF 3 1/2-YEAR-OLD SON

Author: MICHELLE BRUNETTI Staff Writer

Dateline: TOMS RIVER

*Authorities say the boy might have been illegally adopted and brought from Honduras.

A Brick Township couple was arraigned Tuesday on charges related to the beating death of a 3 1/2-year-old boy, who may have been "adopted" illegally from Honduras.

Kathleen Golebieski, also known as Kathleen Kelly, of Midpark Drive in Brick, was charged with murder and endangering the welfare of a child and is being held in the Ocean County Jail under $200,000 bail.

Her husband, Joseph Golebieski, was charged with endangering the welfare of a child and may also be charged with aiding and abetting the alleged murder, Ocean County Prosecutor Dan Carluccio said.

Joseph Golebieski is being held on $50,000 bail.

The couple had been investigated before by the state Division of Youth and Family Services, Carluccio said.

The child, brought into the country from Honduras under the name Kyle Kelly, died of "beatings and strikings causing injury to the skull and to the brain," Carluccio said at a press conference after the arraignment.

His 2-year-old brother was also brought here from Honduras, under the name Ryan Kelly, the prosecutor said. He was not injured and is now in foster care, Carluccio said.

Kyle fell into a coma as a result of his injuries last Friday afternoon at home, Carluccio said. That's when Kathleen Golebieski called for an ambulance, he said.

The child was taken to the trauma unit at Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune, but "was injured to the extent that death was inevitable," Carluccio said. He died late Saturday.

Carluccio said an autopsy showed the boy had multiple injuries in "various stages of healing" and that medical personnel determined the child died as a result of abuse.

He also said a police investigation turned up witnesses who said the boy had been beaten with various instruments on a regular basis. However, he said, the Brick Township police department received no calls about the family in the weeks they lived in the township.

The Golebieskis, both in their late 30s, moved to Ocean County from Shrewsbury Township in Monmouth County about a month ago, the prosecutor said.

Carluccio said the family was reported to the state Division of Youth and Family Services for investigation of possible child abuse while living in Monmouth County, and the agency visited the home on three occasions.

"It's my understanding with DYFS there is one standard test to see if there are visible signs of injury. At the time it occurred there were no visible injuries," Carluccio said.

Joseph Golebieski works for the federal government at Fort Monmouth, according to the Prosecutor's Office.

The Golebieskis held onto each other for support during the arraignment. Both looked frail, and their voices were strained.

"These folks took every cent they had to adopt these children," said defense attorney Kevin Kelly of Brick Township. "They went to Honduras ... this is not a situation where they have the wherewithal to travel outside of the country," he said in asking for a lesser bail.

Defense attorney Kelly is no relation to the suspect.

The prosecutor said there were no records of adoption papers filed in New Jersey or of any proceedings held. When children are adopted from out of the country they still must go through a state-approved adoption agency to finalize the placement, he said.

Kelly said the couple will prove the death was not the result of murder, but Carluccio said the evidence against them is "clear and convincing."

The bail remains set without the option of paying 10 percent, and if they make the higher bail they must surrender their passports too, under orders from Superior Court Judge Peter J. Giovine.

No trial date has been set for the Golebieskis