SOUTH BRUNSWICK-- Police say a Flemington man who broke into a liquor store early Friday morning suffered frostbite while hiding in a snowbank to avoid arrest.

George Pesavage Jr., 47, allegedly entered Viking Buy-Rite Wine and Liquor on Rt. 1 shortly before 2 a.m., setting off an alarm. Police arrived and found no one inside the store, but the front door had been smashed and several items taken. The store owner arrived and showed police surveillance video of someone breaking in and snatching up about $650 in liquor, cigarettes, lighters and lottery tickets. The damage to the door was estimated at $2,000.

About a half-hour later Officer Mike Urstadt, while patrolling the area, spotted someone peering from behind an 8-foot snowbank nearby.

Urstadt approached and found Pesavage in clothing soaked from hiding in the snowbank, police said. He was bleeding from cuts he allegedly sustained when he broke the liquor store's door and was suffering from frostbite on a morning when temperatures ranged from the high teens to the low 20s.

Pesavage was also found with two bags containing items from the burglary, police said.

Pesavage, who told police he had walked from Princeton, was arrested for burglary and criminal mischief. He was treated for hypothermia and his injuries at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital before being sent to the Middlesex County Corrections Center pending a bail hearing.

"The man was saved by being arrested," said Chief of Police Raymond Hayducka. "The freezing temperatures had already started to lower his body temperature when officers located him. The officers' fast response and detailed search resulted in locating the stolen items and saving this man's life."

Paul Milo may be reached at pmilo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@PaulMilo2. Find NJ.com on Facebook.  

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