A woman was allegedly choked by a New York anesthesiologist and forced to swallow an abortion pill after she told him she was pregnant, police authorities said Friday.
Thomas Pfeiffer of Red Hook, Hudson Valley, was arrested and charged with strangulation, abortion and assault on Wednesday. More charges are pending, the Associated Press reported.
On Wednesday night, deputies responded to a "no voice" 911 call from a home in the town of Rosendale, 60 miles south of Albany, NY, according to the Ulster County Sheriff's Office.
On arrival, authorities found that the 44-year-old had allegedly choked and then forced the unidentified woman to swallow a "morning pill" after she told him that a home pregnancy test had come out positive.
The suspect had attempted to force the woman to take Plan B - an emergency contraceptive pill, according to UK MailOnline.
After being treated at Health Alliance Hospital in Kingston, the woman was released, police said, declining to release details of her relationship with Pfeiffer.
Detective Lt Ed Brewster told RecordOnline that the felony abortion charge came after they were advised by the Ulster County District Attorney's Office.
As of Friday morning, Pfeiffer was being held in county jail on a bail of $50,000 cash. It couldn't immediately be determined if he has a lawyer.
Last month, Pope Francis had condemned the right to die movement, stating that "playing with life" in ways such as abortion and euthanasia is sinful against God's creation and not an act of dignity, Catholic News Agency reported.
Deeming the acts as a "false sense of compassion," Francis stressed that each human life, no matter in what condition, is meant to be sacred.
"We're living in a time of experimentation with life. But a bad experiment... (we're) playing with life," the Pope had remarked.
