'Attacker chewed off woman's tongue'

A man bit off and chewed part of a woman's tongue during a sex rampage which saw him target four other women in one night, a court heard.

A man bit off and chewed part of a woman's tongue during a sex rampage which saw him target four other women in one night, a court heard.

Andrew Humphris, 36, preyed on "vulnerable" women and acted "like an animal", the jury at Preston Crown Court was told.

The court heard that Mr Humphris forced the woman, a prostitute, to open her mouth before biting off a portion of her tongue and chewing it.

Richard Haworth, for the prosecution, said the attacks became more violent during the night as Mr Humphris became increasingly frustrated. He had visited a prostitute during a trip to Blackpool to see his brother on 28 October last year. Mr Haworth said Mr Humphris became aggressive and bit the girl's tongue, but not enough to draw blood.

Shortly after midnight he harassed a woman, trying to separate her from her friends, and later carried out a violent sex attack on a woman in her car, the jury was told.

After biting off part of the tongue of the fourth victim shortly before 3am he chased a fifth woman who was driving to work. He rammed her car and tried to force her to stop, said Mr Haworth.

Mr Humphris, of Leyton, east London, denies the charges. He has pleaded guilty to one charge of dangerous driving.

None of the victims can be named for legal reasons.

Describing Mr Humphris after the attack on the prostitute, Mr Haworth told Judge Robert Brown: "He was still overcome by the urge to commit a sex offence."

The trial continues.