A Border Patrol agent had to get a tetanus shot after being bit by a woman arrested for smuggling illegal immigrants while refusing separation from her service dog.

Agents said Lanikki Monique Griffin latched onto the agent’s arm for up to 15 seconds, chomping hard enough to leave a bite mark above his wrist.

The incident happened last week after agents said they spotted her picking up two illegal immigrants on the side of Interstate 8 early one morning. They tried to get the vehicle to pull over, but the driver refused and stepped on the gas.

As the Honda Crosstour tried to evade the agents, the driver lost control and ran into a ditch, tangling the vehicle in barbed wire so thick it couldn’t drive away. The two illegals fled, but the authorities swooped in and arrested Ms. Griffin and found her chocolate Labrador, Brownie.

Agents say Ms. Griffin was aggressive and refused to follow commands when they tried to separate her from her dog at the scene, including threatening self-harm, so they let Brownie stay with her while being driven to Calexico Station in California.

At the border facility, she admitted to smuggling, saying she was paying off a $800 debt and was supposed to take the migrants to Yuma, Arizona. At one point, agents told her they finally needed to separate her from Brownie, and she became aggressive again. An agent identified only as Tucker tried to get the leash, and she bit him, according to court documents.

Other agents managed to pull her off Agent Tucker, who was taken to the hospital and got the tetanus shot.

The two migrants, both from Mexico, were tracked down. One said he was paying $14,000 to be smuggled into the U.S.

• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.