By Jeff Small
(KSDK) -- A St. Louis police officer has been suspended while the department conducts an investigation concerning allegations that he sexually assaulted a 24-year-old woman early Thursday morning.
The woman said the nearly two hour long attack happened at the hands the officer, whom she had just met.
She said the night started at a friend's apartment in south St. Louis; the group had been drinking. Around 2:30 a.m., the victim said she and the officer had consensual sexual contact on the couch.
She then claimed she went to a bathroom, where the officer followed. The victim said things took a turn and that she was forced to continue sexual acts she did not consent to.
"I had my hands on his uniform and I pulled him and I was gasping for air," said the victim.
The woman said she was trying to stop the sexual acts as the officer became violent, but was too afraid to say anything.
"He was just hitting me and my lip was messed up and bloody and it was because it was turning him on," she said.
The alleged victim says her blood, mascara and saliva, covered the officer's uniform by the time the assault was over.
A spokesperson with the police department gave NewsChannel 5 the following statement: "We can confirm there is an internal affairs investigation into an allegation of sexual assault involving an off-duty St. Louis Police Officer, and that the officer is currently suspended."
KSDK