Carver County Man Accused of Biting Off Part of Woman’s Ear

CHASKA (AP) - A southern Minnesota man is accused of choking his girlfriend and biting off part of her ear after earlier setting her cat on fire.

A charging document filed in Carver County says Michael Anthony Trudeau argued with the woman at her apartment in Chaska last Sunday and threatened to kill her. The charges say the 51-year-old got on top of her, began choking her and shoved an umbrella into her mouth. The woman told investigators she bit Trudeau's finger as he attacked her and then he bit off part of her ear.

The woman eventually escaped to the landlord's apartment and police were called. The woman told officers Trudeau had set her cat on fire three weeks ago, choked it and dismembered the animal. Court records do not list an attorney for Trudeau.