Police: Man in custody after severing his mother’s arm with chain saw

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE/Gray News) - Two officers were injured in Louisiana Monday after they responded to a report of a man who allegedly severed his mother’s arm with a chain saw.

The New Orleans Police Department said 34-year-old John Pittman attacked his 70-year-old mother with the chain saw around 2 p.m. in Gentilly.

Officials said the woman was found after she escaped to a relative’s house just over three miles away from the home.

“That’s crazy. It’s the same stuff you see on TV,” Tawain Crockett, who lives nearby, told WVUE.

Officers later located Pittman and took him into custody. According to officials, the two officers suffered “mild to moderate” injuries during the encounter. The details of these injuries or how they were sustained were not disclosed.

Pittman was booked for aggravated assault by cutting and resisting arrest.

Pittman’s mother was taken to the hospital in critical condition. The officers were also taken to a hospital for treatment.

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