A South Amboy police officer has been charged with theft and misconduct.
SOUTH AMBOY -- A township police detective was charged Thursday with stealing thousands of dollars seized from criminal investigations from the station's evidence room.
Det. Matthew Barcheski, 39, of South Amboy, was charged with theft and official misconduct for allegedly taking $3,000 "in various amounts from the department's evidence storage room" over an unknown period of time, according to a statement from the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.
Barcheski, who makes $114,010 a year, has been a police officer in the township for about 12 years, according to public records and the county prosecutor's office. He began his career at the county sheriff's office in 2003 and recently served as a member of the Middlesex County Special Operations Response Team (SORT).
The charges were filed after an investigation by Det. Nicholas Chiorello, of the county prosecutor's office.
The South Amboy Police Department could not be reached for comment.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Chiorello at 732-745-3848.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.