Woman wakes up with distorted vision as man chokes and rapes her, Tennessee cops say

A woman woke up to a man in her apartment choking her, Tennessee police said.

It was a man she had been briefly dating, 32-year-old Robert V. Collins, according to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.

Now, Collins faces charges of attempted murder, aggravated rape, assault, reckless endangerment and resisting arrest, according to Davidson County court records.

McClatchy News could not immediately reach the attorney representing Collins on Jan. 31 for comment.

The 35-year-old woman was asleep in her Nashville apartment on Jan. 25 when she woke up to Collins choking her, police said.

She lost consciousness as he squeezed her neck, then woke up with distorted vision as he began to sexually assault her, police said in an arrest affidavit.

When speaking with the woman at a hospital, an officer reported she had “bruising on her throat consistent with being strangled and she had a raspy voice when she spoke,” according to the affidavit.

Police went to arrest Collins on Jan. 26 but said he pulled away from officers. He picked up his dog, then the dog bit an officer’s hand, drawing blood, police said in the affidavit.

He was booked in jail and held on a $210,000 bond, Nashville police said.

This story was originally published January 31, 2024 at 1:04 PM with the headline "Woman wakes up with distorted vision as man chokes and rapes her, Tennessee cops say."