A Scranton man insistent on returning to the Dominican Republic bit and stabbed his brother-in-law who tried to calm him down Thursday night, Scranton police said.
Hatuey Vargas, 19, 529 Eynon St., was put in a "bear-hug" by his brother-in-law, Omar Duval, so he wouldn't hit anyone at around 8 p.m. Thursday, police reported.
To shrug Mr. Duval off, Mr. Vargas bit him on his left shoulder, leaving a large bite mark.
Mr. Vargas went back into the house and came back out with a knife in his hand, police said.
Mr. Duval backed up, lost his footing, and fell, and Mr. Vargas jumped on him. Mr. Duval knocked him off, but not before Mr. Vargas stabbed him in the left arm, police said.
Police responded and found Mr. Duval bleeding from a deep wound on his arm and had an ambulance take him to Geisinger Community Medical Center. There was no information about his condition late Friday.
Police took Mr. Vargas into custody and charged him with aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, simple assault and harassment.
He is in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $20,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 22.
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