Dog Owner's Friend Asks For Money To Retrieve Pickup, Pet's Body From Icy Toms River

By Karen Wall

When the ice thaws sufficiently for salvage teams to do the work, Andrew Mayer’s pickup truck -- and the body of his dog, Rolo -- will be retrieved from the bottom of the Toms River.

But who actually will be responsible for the pickup’s removal is unclear.

Mayer’s family and friends have come to his defense, saying he tried to save his dog. On Tuesday, one friend set up a GoFundme campaign, seeking $3,000 to pay for the retrieval of the truck and of Rolo’s body -- setting off another firestorm.

“Don’t donate to this woman!” said one commenter, who shared the page for the GoFundMe campaign on the Toms River Patch Facebook page.

Commenters on the Ocean County Police, Fire & EMS Facebook page were enraged, with several saying they have reported the campaign as fraudulent to GoFundMe administrators.

So far, the campaign has raised $2,210 from two donors -- one who donated $10 and a second who donated $2,200.

An email to GoFundMe officials requesting information on how it responds to complaints about fundraising campaigns started on its website had not been answered as of noon on Wednesday.

Mayer, 27, was charged Tuesday with criminal mischief, reckless driving and pollution in the incident, where Mayer’s truck broke through the ice on the Toms River and sank off the shore of Pine Beach, New Jersey State Police Sgt. 1st Class Gregory Williams said. The criminal michief charge is for causing a substantial interruption of public services, Williams said. Charges from the New Jersey SPCA are pending, Williams said Tuesday.

Toms River police were called to the area of Gladney Avenue just after midnight Sunday when a caller reported seeing lights on the ice. Police saw the vehicle -- later identified as Mayer’s pickup -- on the ice doing donuts. When the pickup’s lights suddenly disappeared, Toms River police called in search-and-rescue personnel, Toms River police spokesman Ralph Stocco said Sunday.

After a 10-hour search-and-rescue operation that included local firefighters and emergency medical staff, police officers, and personnel from the state police, a U.S. Coast Guard H-65 Dolphin search-and-rescue helicopter out of Coast Guard Station Atlantic City located the pickup truck sitting about 100 yards off the Pine Beach shore.

New Jersey State Police Capt. Stephen Jones, a public information officer for the state police, on Monday said a private vendor would be hired to conduct the salvage operation to retrieve the pickup, which broke through the ice while Mayer was driving on the river early Sunday morning, and sank off the shore of Pine Beach. Jones said the insurance company that covers the pickup would likely be billed for the recovery.

Animal lovers and activists have been up at arms on social media over the death of Rolo, a boxer mix, calling for harsh penalties for Mayer, including a petition on change.org that calls on the Ocean County Prosecutor’s office to press more charges.

“Countless first responders and emergency personnel were put in harm’s way. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent. Why? The owner and driver of the truck and his passenger decided it would be fun to take the truck onto the ice and do ’donuts,’ ” writes Nicole Kearney, the person listed as the initiator of the petition. “... these two people had NO concern or thought for anyone, including the driver’s own dog, who drowned after the truck fell through the ice. We need to show that this kind of behavior is NOT acceptable.”

The petition had nearly 850 signatures as of noon Wednesday.

In the meantime, the pickup truck sits in the river. It is in water that is about 6 feet deep, according to NOAA navigational charts of the river, a majority of which is covered by ice; the water is about 30 degrees currently. There is a gap in the middle of the river where the current can be seen flowing along, but the spot where the truck broke through the ice is on the north side of the gap.

An article on the Popular Mechanics website explaining how to escape a sinking vehicle estimates a person has 30 seconds to a minute to get out before water reaches the level of the windows. Once the water reaches the windows, the vehicle submerges quickly.

Mayer’s cousin, Donna Jung, told NJ.com on Tuesday that friends twice had to rescue Mayer from the water, and that Mayer tried to get the frightened dog out of the truck.

State police said Mayer told investigators he could not find the dog when the pickup sank.

Because of the weather on Sunday -- snow began falling about 10 a.m. and increased in intensity until about 5 p.m., when it changed over to sleet -- the decision was made not to risk the lives of divers to try to retrieve the body of Rolo, state police said.

Related stories:

• Toms River Man Charged In Pickup Falling Through Ice, Killing Dog
• Seaside Heights Cop Rips ‘Animal Loving Freaks’ Angry Over Dog’s Death In Icy Toms River
• Cousin: Toms River Pickup Truck Driver Who Fell Through Ice Tried To Rescue Dog
• Poll: Should Toms River Truck Driver Who Fell Through Ice, Killing Dog, Be Criminally Charged?
• UPDATE: Two Men Identified After Pickup Truck Falls Through Toms River Ice; Dog Dies
• Cops: Man Won’t Be Charged In Pickup Truck Sinking In Toms River, Killing Dog