A man has pleaded guilty to beating a woman in the head with a pipe.
EDISON -- A man has pleaded guilty to brutally beating a 30-year-old woman in the head with a pipe and then leaving her for dead in an area of the Raritan Center last year.
Mickey Vanderpool, 61, of Elizabeth Mickey Vanderpool, 61, of Elizabeth, pleaded guilty to a second-degree count of aggravated assault in the attack, which occurred in June 2016, according to a statement from the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office.
Under a plea agreement, Vanderpool will be sentenced to eight years in state prison and will be required to serve at least 85 percent of the term -- or nearly seven years -- before being eligible for parole, the statement said.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 23 at the Middlesex County Courthouse in New Brunswick before Superior Court Judge Alberto Rivas.
An investigation found that Vanderpool had met the woman in Newark. Then, some time later in Edison, he "repeatedly struck her (on) the head with the pipe" and then left her in an area in the township's Raritan Center, according to the statement.
After a day or more, the woman "wandered around the industrial complex" before spotting a utility worker whom she flagged down for help.
Police were called to the scene and the woman was taken to JFK Medical Center in Edison, where she was treated and released.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.