A judge halted a trial after a bank robber ate his own feces while testifying on the stand in front of the jury, prosecutors in California said.
40-year-old Andrew Gilbertson pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity after allegedly robbing a bank in San Luis Obispo.
Police said that during the robbery, Gilbertson disguised himself with a hat and a pink child backpack before sliding a note to the bank teller demanding cash.
He told investigators that the Virgin Mary told him what to wear during the robbery.
Gilbertson said that he heard the Virgin Mary again on Wednesday, when she told him to eat his own feces while on the witness stand.
While testifying, Gilbertson reached into his pants, pulled out his own waste and started eating it. In the chaos that followed, the judge called for a recess.
When the trial resumed later, a mental health expert testified that he saw Gilbertson hitting himself to get rid of the voices in his head