Man allegedly assaults woman, infant and Sumter police officers
Faces charges when he is released from hospital
A 32-year-old Hopkins man is facing multiple charges, including assault and resisting arrest, for allegedly assaulting a woman, her 4-month-old child and four Sumter police officers outside a West Liberty Street business on Thursday.
Sumter Police Department officers responded to the 600 block of West Liberty Street just after 10:30 a.m. after the woman, 25, reported she and her child had been assaulted by the suspect, said Tonyia McGirt, public information officer for the agency.
Officers located and apprehended the suspect, whose combative actions led to four officers sustaining minor injuries, she said.
The suspect was taken to Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital for treatment of minor injuries and evaluation. McGirt said the man will be charged after he is released from the hospital.
His name has not been released by the police department because he has not yet been booked into Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center. However, the incident happened in a public space that was visible to passersby.
When The Sumter Item happened upon the scene, the suspect could be seen in handcuffs with his stomach to the ground, which he licked as officers worked to lift him up.