A motorbike passenger’s jaw was almost ripped off after she rode mouth-first into a cord someone had deliberately tied across a street.
Linda Bondy was left with horrifying injuries after her mouth collided with the ratchet strap while she was pillion passenger on her husband Ron’s bike earlier this month.
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She was almost decapitated after striking the white cord strung across a street in Tuscon, Arizona, and had to have four titanium plates inserted into her jaw.
By coincidence, Ron had bent forward to adjust a switch moments beforehand, meaning he avoided injury.
Updates from Ron on his Facebook page disclosed how Linda spent time on a ventilator on ICU, fractured her cheeks, palate, eye socket and split her jaw.
He said that her optic nerve was damaged by the crime – which he insists must not be refereed to as an ‘accident’ – and said Linda lost many of her teeth, two of which are still attached to a piece of jawbone that may later be used for reconstruction.
According to Ron’s Facebook page, Linda must also undergo extensive facial cosmetic surgery, as well as use a feeding tube after she is discharged from hospital.
Recalling the incident on a GoFundMe page set up to raise funds for Linda, her step-daughter daughter Arizona said: ‘Linda, was riding on the back of my dad’s motorcycle; a favorite pastime for both of them.
‘Unfortunately, some punks in our quiet neighborhood decided to maliciously tie a ratchet strap from one side of the street across to the other.
‘Neither of my parents saw the strap as they cruised down the neighborhood street and unfortunately Linda was nearly decapitated when she collided with the strap. (My dad, thankfully, was sitting lower than Mom, and was mostly unaffected).
‘The extent of her injuries is heart breaking, as the strap nearly ripped her jaw off.
‘There is extensive damage to her face, vital arteries, and soft tissue, and dozens of fractures to her face, skull and possibly cervical vertebrae that so far have required several surgeries and will require several more.’
And posting on Facebook Tuesday, Ron added: ‘I corrected a Doctor the other day in front of all his students when he announced that Linda had been in a motorcycle accident
‘THIS WAS NOT AN ACCIDENT!!
‘No one ACCIDENTALLY tied a tie down strap around a mailbox across the street to a tree THIS WAS A CRIME!! At the very least, Aggravated Assault (where it stands now with TPD)’
Tuscon Police are investigating the crime and have appealed for information.
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