A 36-year-old man accused of biting off part of a Los Angeles Police Department sergeant's finger at a Metro station was charged Monday with aggravated mayhem.
Ephraim Okorie also faces two felony counts of assault on a peace officer or firefighter in the attack Thursday at the Vermont/Santa Monica Metro B Line Station in East Hollywood. He was expected to appear in court Monday.
It was not clear whether he has an attorney who can speak on his behalf. He was being held on $130,000 bail, according to jail records.
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Officers were on patrol on the Red Line train at about 10 a.m. Thursday they saw a man in possession of drug paraphernalia, police said. Officers approached the man and escorted him off the train at the Vermont/Santa Monica Station.
After Okorie was taken off the train, he fought with officers, police said. During the struggle, Okorie bit off a portion of a finger of an LAPD sergeant, police said.
The sergeant and Okorie were both taken to a hospital for treatment.
"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."
