A woman fought off a sexual assault by biting off part of her attacker’s tongue, police said, and a suspect was hospitalized.
The attempted attack happened in an alley off Atlantic Avenue near a Roman Catholic church in Stamford around 10 p.m. Thursday, the Stamford Advocate reported. The attacker grabbed the woman and forced his tongue into her mouth after she had left the church.
The woman fought back by biting the man, lopping off about an inch of his tongue.
“It was a substantial piece of his tongue," Sgt. Paul Guzda told the Advocate.
The man fled, but the police recovered a chunk of tongue at the scene.
Gerard Michael Landon sought medical treatment at a Stamford massage and chiropractic clinic on Friday, police said, then was arrested after a foot chase. Landon, 46, was being held on $500,000 bond and was expected to be arraigned Monday.
NBC station WVIT of Hartford, Conn., and The Associated Press contributed to this report.