The man who tried to evade Pittsburgh police by walking 5 miles along the frozen Allegheny River on Jan. 29 will remain in Allegheny County Jail.
Gary Cawley, 47, of Pittsburgh was held for court during a preliminary hearing Thursday in Pittsburgh Municipal Court. Bond was set at $100,000.
His formal arraignment is scheduled for 1 p.m. March 24.
He faces felony charges of burglary and criminal trespassing as well as misdemeanor possession of an instrument of crime, evading arrest on foot and disorderly conduct.
An initial charge of railroad interference was dismissed.
Cawley caused a spectacle during a slow pursuit that began at the former Veterans Administration campus on Highland Drive in Pittsburgh’s Lincoln-Lemington section.
Officers found Cawley inside, tampering with an electrical panel, according to a criminal complaint. He fled on foot on a path that included a 30-foot drop to a snowy ravine below the property. Footprints led to the river, where police located Crawley walking on the ice and followed him as he walked slowly from Highland Park through Verona, Oakmont and eventually to Harmar.
Officers walked on railroad tracks to monitor Cawley from solid ground. They apprehended him after about three hours when he diverted onto frozen Deer Creek.
Temperatures hovered in the teens that day. Cawley was reported to be in stable condition when arrested.
Pittsburgh EMS River Rescue and police departments from Aspinwall, O’Hara, Oakmont, Harmar and Verona, as well as the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office and state police, responded.
In the week following Cawley’s arrest, emergency crews across the region have issued sharp warnings to people about the dangers of walking on frozen rivers.
“Don’t put yourself at risk to get injured — because our first responders have to put their lives on the line to help you,” Pittsburgh EMS Chief Amera Gilchrist said.