A woman in the US bit off a sex offender's penis during a reported sexual assault, then ran to seek help while naked and covered in blood.
The incident happened in the South Carolina city of Greenville in August, but the alleged attacker only faced court this week following extensivemedical treatment.
61-year-old Dennis Slaton, a registered sex offender with a long criminal history, denies the allegations against him.
An incident report from the Greenville County Sheriff's Office states that the alleged victim told police she was waiting to meet someone she met online when she saw Slaton driving past and asked him to pull over.
She told police that she immediately felt uneasy and asked Slaton to drop her off, offering him $5 for the ride.
She alleges that Slaton then pulled out a knife and held it to her throat, saying that she owed him money, before driving back to his home where he allegedly assaulted and threatened to kill her.
The woman then bit off his penis and stabbed him in the buttocks with the knife he had threatened her with before escaping the house and seeking help.
The report states she ran down the street looking for help before eventually finding refuge in a local restaurant.
Slaton, who was bailed following the charges, denied the allegations and told the Greenville News: "It was pretty bad, pretty tragic, what happened to me, if things had not transpired as they had, I would have been found here at my house dead."
Slaton has convictions for attempted rape, sodomy and "peeping, voyeurism, or aggravated voyeurism".
Neighbours told media that police were regularly seen at his address and expressed surprise that he was granted bail following the alleged assault.
"It's usually like five or 10 people, and they always have their guns drawn," neighbour Natasha Manuel told WSPA. "If there's been people over here with guns drawn they way they have, why has he not still in jail right now?"
