Sheriff: Man charged with kidnapping in George County after holding woman captive

GEORGE COUNTY, Miss. (WLOX) - A Lucedale man is facing a kidnapping charge after authorities say he refused to let a woman leave following a fight between the two of them.

According to a release from George County Sheriff’s Office, deputies received a call for assistance in the Basin community Sunday at 6:30am on Ed Evans Road.

When deputies arrived, they found a woman who was visibly hurt and wrapped only in a muddy towel. According to her, she and 31-year-old Kevin Michael Sykes got into a fight the night before. She said he injured her during that altercation and pulled her back into the house when she tried to flee.

She said she was able to escape later but was nude when she did so. Running through the woods, she told deputies she found the muddy towel and used it to wrap herself up as she ran for help.

After taking her statement, deputies went to the residence to locate Sykes but he was no longer at the property. Law enforcement returned later that same day and were able to take Sykes into custody.

In addition to being charged with felony kidnapping for restraining the victim, Sykes was also charged with misdemeanor domestic violence and malicious mischief charges, as well as a contempt of court warrant through George County Justice Court.

Authorities later learned that he was previously arrested for aggravated assault in Oregon County, Missouri, and is expected to go to trial on that charge next week.

Sykes was booked into the George County Regional Correctional Facility and given a commercial bond in the amount of $20,000 for the kidnapping charge, $1,000 each for the malicious mischief and domestic violence charges, and a $1,000 signature bond was assigned for the contempt warrant.

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