It started as a panicked call about a man breaking into a house where a babysitter and two children were hiding. By the time deputies arrived, the situation had spiraled into smashed belongings, violent threats, and a suspect who alternated between rage and claiming medical emergencies.
According to a report from the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched to a Proctorville residence on a call that a man was trying to force his way inside and threatening to kill the male who lived there. The caller didn’t know whether he was armed.
When deputies pulled up, they found Kevin Salyers sitting in a burgundy extended-cab truck with the engine running. He appeared confused and smelled strongly of alcohol. Deputies detained him while trying to sort out what had happened.
Inside the home, the babysitter — who was there with two children — said she initially thought the noise at the door was the residents returning. Instead, she realized it was Salyers. She told deputies he began circling the house, then forced his way inside through the back door after breaking through a gate and knocking items over in the yard.
Once inside, she said Salyers stormed through the home screaming that “he better be strapped because I’m going to kill him,” referring to Andrew “Andy” Blake, who also lives at the residence. She told deputies he ordered her not to call anyone and warned her not to tell anyone he was there. She said she was terrified and had no idea what he might do next.
The child’s mother, who has a court order granting her full rights to the home, told deputies she could hear the chaos over the Ring camera. She said she has been trying to get a protection order because she is afraid of Salyers, who she says drinks heavily, recently left rehab, and has been unstable since she filed for divorce and custody.
Andy told deputies he returned to find furniture knocked over, grills flipped, trophies broken, and the garage torn apart. He also found several of his belongings piled in the back of Salyers’ truck, which he said Salyers was not legally permitted to remove due to the court order. Andy told deputies he wanted to press charges for both the threats and the destruction.
Deputies collected written statements and reviewed video evidence. When confronted, Salyers insisted he had “done nothing,” denied making threats, and alternated between saying he understood his Miranda rights and claiming there was no proof against him. When asked about the alcohol odor, he denied drinking.
Deputies attempted to secure his vehicle, but Salyers insisted they “leave it alone” and “let it run out of gas.” He continued to yell, question whether cameras had recorded him threatening anyone, and then, during transport, began repeatedly claiming chest pains.
Deputies stopped at EMS Station 3, where he was examined and cleared. On the way to jail, he began screaming again, saying if the chest pains didn’t kill him, he would. He threatened suicide multiple times, saying he would “blow [his] brains out” when released.
Deputies transported him to Ironton St. Mary’s for a second evaluation before returning him to jail.
The case includes body-worn camera footage, multiple witness statements, and video evidence from the residents.
Charges are expected to include breaking and entering, threats of violence, criminal damaging, and violating a court order, with additional charges possible pending review of the video footage.
