Attorney out as family’s assets in dispute.

The 19-year-old accused of killing 17 people in Parkland last month was thought to have few assets, other than a Kia owned by his dead mother.

But newly filed court records claim that Nikolas Cruz may be heir to far more and that a family friend has stonewalled efforts to find out the full extent of his inheritance.

That friend, Rocxanne Deschamps of Lantana, had filed papers a day after the school shooting to be named personal representative over the estate of Lynda Cruz, the mother of Nikolas.

A Boca Raton attorney handling the case, Audra Simovitch, now is claiming in court documents that Deschamps is blocking discovery of the true assets in the estate.

Simovitch withdrew from the probate case Tuesday at the jailhouse request of Nikolas, according to court documents.

The attorney has told the court she has reason to believe Deschamps has control over the dead woman’s furniture, a $5,000 engagement ring, a grand piano, Louis Vuitton wallet, elephant crystal figurines, credit and debit cards, and bank statements.

The court filing also contends that Nikolas and his younger brother, Zachary, may be beneficiaries to money left in trusts and to proceeds from an insurance policy and an annuity.

Previously in court records, the only asset reportedly left by Lynda, who died of pneumonia Nov. 1, was the Kia.

An earlier court petition had said Lynda died without a will, but the new filing claims a will may, indeed, exist.

Deschamps did not respond to an email requesting comment.

Nikolas’ assets are important because he is a client of the Broward Public Defender’s Office, which is court-appointed to serve only the indigent. People with wealth are obligated to hire their own attorneys. The Public Defender’s Office has asked the court and the Broward Clerk of Courts to determine if Nikolas has assets that could pay for his legal defense.

The Broward State Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday that it plans to pursue the death penalty against him in the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Last week, Cruz was indicted on 17 counts of both murder and attempted murder.

Simovitch said in the court papers that she was “no longer able to give effective legal counsel” and has “irreconcilable differences” with Nikolas. Her decision to withdraw also came as Zachary, now 18, asked a judge to disqualify her from representing his brother, according to court records. She was hired in December by Nikolas to handle the probate case.

Simovitch told the South Florida Sun Sentinel: “In 24 years of practicing, I’ve never quite had this happen before. Usually people are fighting about assets once the estate is opened, not prior to getting it opened.”

A new attorney now is asserting that he’s representing Zachary.

Jose M. Lorenzo Jr., a Coral Gables probate attorney, recently notified Simovitch by email that he would petition the court to have Zachary appointed as the representative of Lynda’s estate. He asked that she turn over her files to him.

Reached by the Sun Sentinel Tuesday evening Lorenzo said: “I only represent Zachary.” He declined to comment further or answer questions.

Before the shooting, Nikolas told the parents of a schoolmate who took him in after his mother’s death that he would inherit $800,000 when he turns 22.

Staff writers Rafael Olmeda and Paula McMahon contributed to this report.