Charges have been filed against the man who fled from officers by walking on the frozen Allegheny River for miles.
The incident all started at the former Veterans Affairs building on Highland Drive in Lincoln-Lemington Belmar. Police were called to the area shortly after noon for someone trespassing.
PHOTOS: First responders work to get man off frozen Allegheny River
According to the criminal complaint, when officers arrived, they found a man, later identified as Gary Cawley, tampering with an electrical panel.
Police said Cawley disregarded their orders and ran across a large, snow-covered field and into the woods.
Cawley eventually made his way onto the ice on the Allegheny River and walked several miles.
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Police paperwork states that officers tried telling Cawley to come to the shoreline, but he responded by saying, “It was only trespassing! I’m not going back to jail! Just send me a citation!” and that he’d “walk all the way to Mississippi” before he would go to officers.
Eventually, around 4 p.m., Cawley complied and was taken into custody in Harmar Township near the Target. He was taken to a hospital in stable condition.
Cawley is charged with burglary, criminal trespassing, possessing instruments of crime, evading arrest and disorderly conduct.
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