The U.S. Coast Guard and New Jersey State Police recovered a dog frozen to death inside a 1989 Mazda white pickup that fell into the icy Toms River on Saturday night.

Toms River Police spokesman Ralph Stocco said that they got a call at 12:15 a.m. on Sunday about a truck driving onto the frozen river from the end of Gladney Avenue. When it was at the center of the frozen river, it began driving in circles.

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A helicopter crew saw a hole in the ice on Sunday morning at 10:20, and the truck was about 100 feet from the shore off Motor Road in Pine Beach

The empty truck yielded only a dead boxer mix inside, but no people were inside the pickup.

In its report on Facebook, the Toms River police said it could see the pickup's headlight and brake lights from the shoreline as the truck headed south and west toward the other side of the river.

To remove the pickup from the icy water, rescue team members wore ice rescue suits and used fan boats. The team initially had difficulty determining if there was someone inside the submerged truck because of its tinted windows, said New Jersey State Police spokesman Sgt. First Class Gregory Williams.

Williams said that the driver of the truck, Andrew Mayer, 27, and the passenger, Daniel Jolly, 25, were interviewed after they turned themselves to the Tom Rivers Police department, however it has not filed any charges yet.

The Pine Beach Police Department and New Jersey State Police Marine Unit are investigating the incident. It is asking residents who have any more information about the truck and the man who left it to call the Toms River Police Department at (732) 349-0150 or the Pine Beach River Police Department at (732) 349-2010.

TagsDog, freeze to death, toms river, truck