A man allegedly bit off part of an LAPD officer’s finger during an arrest gone wrong, the department wrote in a Thursday statement.
The incident occurred on the Metro Red Line in Los Angeles on Thursday morning when officers approached and escorted a man, who allegedly was in possession of narcotics, off a train, according to the LAPD statement.
As the suspect was escorted off the train, he allegedly began to violently resist the officers, prompting them to utilize force. Amid the ensuing chaos, the suspect managed to bite off part of one officer’s finger, the statement continued.
Witnesses said the suspect allegedly tried to bite other officers as well, according to KTLA 5. (RELATED: Woman Allegedly Burns LAPD Station With Flaming Shopping Cart)
Eventually officers managed to arrest the suspect for mayhem along with resistance of an executive order. Paramedics from the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) transported the injured officer to the hospital, the LAPD wrote in the statement.
Doctors later determined that they could not reattach the missing part of the officer’s finger. The suspect was also transported to a hospital with minor injuries, KTLA 5 reported.
“It can be a little scary here sometimes,” witness Dexter Norwood told KTLA 5 before emphasizing the importance of situational awareness.
Kenyson Dove, a security guard who works on the Los Angeles Metro, told KTLA 5 about an incident in which he “had to take down a guy two weeks ago just like that, smoking on the platform.”
LAPD Chief Michel Moore in the department statement said “I’m deeply disturbed by the vicious and gruesome attack on our Sergeant as he and other officers were simply conducting routine patrol of the transit line.”
“Sergeant, we appreciate your bravery and commitment to keeping our city safe,” read an April 27 Tweet by the LAPD thanking the injured officer.