An Oregon man is accused of biting off the ear of a senior citizen on a light-rail train platform near Portland. The suspect allegedly told investigators that he attacked a 78-year-old man because he believed the senior citizen was a robot sent to kill him.
Shortly after 2 a.m. on Tuesday, Koryn Daniel Kraemer reportedly attacked a 78-year-old man on the Cleveland TriMet MAX platform in Gresham outside of Portland. Witnesses saw Kraemer on top of the victim with a puddle of blood on the platform.
Kraemer allegedly bit off the right ear of a senior citizen. The 25-year-old chewed off the face of the elderly man to the point that the victim’s skull was visible, according to the affidavit.
Police officers allegedly needed to use force to remove Kraemer from the victim. The senior citizen was rushed to the hospital. The man was in stable condition, but needed to be sedated because of the gruesome injuries.
Gresham Police Department officers and Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office deputies took Kraemer into custody. Investigators claimed that Kraemer told them his name was “El Baker.”
Kraemer thanked the police officers and said they “saved his life” by separating him from the victim. Kraemer allegedly told investigators that the senior citizen was a robot sent to kill him.
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s office noted, “Kraemer further stated that he spit out the flesh of the victim that he had consumed and that the responding law enforcement had saved his life by separating him from ‘the robot.'”
KGW8 reported that Kraemer allegedly told police that the senior citizen was a robot “based on how the victim smelled.”
Kraemer told investigators that he had consumed alcohol, cannabis, and fentanyl pills, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Oregon state Rep. Ricki Ruiz remarked, “I was quite frankly in shock. Very concerning, worrisome, and quite frankly terrifying just seeing this around the corner from where I live.”
Kraemer was charged with second-degree assault in Multnomah County District Court on Wednesday. Kraemer pleaded not guilty to the charge. Kraemer is being held in custody without bail.
Kraemer recently moved to Portland from Georgia, according to the affidavit.
Kraemer was originally from New Jersey. He was a soccer goalie for Oberlin College in Ohio during the 2015 and 2016 seasons, according to the school’s athletics website.