A brave British soldier who was shot in the face by the Taliban spat out the bullet - then walked nearly two miles for treatment before being rushed home for an emergency operation.
Lance Corporal Luke Reeson, 22, was on patrol in Nad-e-Ali in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan when the insurgent's bullet hit his Osprey body armour.
But the bullet ricocheted off , smashing into his lower cheek and back out through his mouth.
Despite the bullet shattering his jaw, Lance Corporal Reeson from Torquay in Devon, managed to walk three kilometres with his injury to get medical aid.
The soldier, who was shot in May while serving with the 1 Duke of Lancashire Regiment, Somme Company, has now returned to active duty in Afghanistan.
Luke's mother Kim Reeson, 43, has dubbed her son Desperate Dan after the strong-jawed cartoon character.
The mother-of-three explained how the bullet bounced off Luke's body armour, went up into his lower cheek just below his ear, and broke his jaw before bouncing back out through his mouth.
'His body armour saved him - 100 per cent,' said Mrs Reeson. 'Had it not been for that it would have been a different situation.
'It went in and bounced out like a running stitch.'
