A Los Angeles Police Department sergeant is recovering Friday after undergoing surgery after a man on a Metro B (Red) Line train became combative and bit off a portion of the sergeant’s finger.
According to the LAPD, officers were on routine patrol on the Red Line train around 10:15 a.m. Thursday when they spotted the suspect in possession of drug paraphernalia. Police approached the suspect and escorted him off the train at the Vermont/Santa Monica Station.
Police said that after the suspect was taken off the train, he “became violent and fought with the officers,” and during the ensuing struggle, the suspect bit off a portion of a finger of an LAPD sergeant.
The sergeant and the suspect were both taken to a hospital for treatment, police 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,” LAPD Chief Michel Moore said in a statement. “We remain committed to our work each day to improve the safety of the entire transit system with dedicated patrol engaging.”
The suspect, whose name was not immediately released, was taken into custody on suspicion of mayhem and resisting an executive order.