Seneca Man arrested for Domestic Violence and Kidnapping

The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Seneca man Monday on a charge of domestic violence in the first degree and three counts of kidnapping. Booked into the Oconee County Detention Center was 40-year-old John Christopher West of Nix Road. A deputy met with the victim regarding the reported domestic violence incident at an address on Blue Ridge Boulevard near Seneca. An argument had ensued at the Nix Road address between the married couple that turned physical, according to the victim, with West placing his hands on his wife’s neck and producing a knife while making threats to harm his wife. According to the victim, West would not allow either her or her children to leave a room in the house where they were in. The victim was allowed to leave the residence due to the fact that she told West she had to go to work and take the kids to school. The victim and the children left the residence and contacted the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office. Based upon the evidence gathered as a result of the investigation, the deputy was able to obtain the arrest warrants. West remains in custody at the Oconee County Detention Center on a $50,000 surety bond on the domestic violence charge. West was denied bond on the three kidnapping charges and the bond on those three charges will be set later by a circuit court judge.