Lexington, SC 01/16/2025 (Paul Kirby) – An employee with the Lexington County Fire Service has been placed on administrative leave after he was arrested for kidnaping and domestic violence. 38-year-old Captain Robert Blanton II of West Columbia has worked for the county’s fire service for almost a decade according to reports.
Lexington County Sheriff’s Department investigators believe that Blanton strangled a woman who is reportedly his wife on January 13, 2025. He is also accused of refusing to allow her to leave a West Columbia home they shared together on that same date.
According to an incident report made by a deputy, Blanton found a water bottle with chewing tobacco spit in it that had been left in a trashcan in their home. Blanton apparently felt that this was an indication that someone else, probably a man, had been in their house. During the confrontation over the bottle that followed, Blanton accused the woman of being, “unfaithful in their marriage”. She told deputies he then attempted to strangle her and physically prevented her from fleeing the home and the situation.
The altercation that ensued quickly escalated and Blanton stands accused of grabbing the woman out a chair and throwing her into another one. She said that he pushed her head on the ground so hard that she temporarily lost the ability to hear out of her right ear. Blanton then grabbed he preventing her from leaving and threw her mobile phone away so that she couldn’t call law enforcement or anyone else. When she finally was able to get the phone back from him, she notified the Sheriff’s Department and deputies were then sent to the scene. Once deputies arrived, they discovered bruising and swelling on the woman’s arms and face. Those injuries were attributed to the physical altercation between the couple.
After interviewing the couple, deputies arrested Blanton and charged him with 1st degree domestic violence and kidnapping, the appropriate charge for restricting the females free movement. He was taken into custody and booked into the Lexington County Detention Center.
According to Lexington County, Blanton has been placed on administrative leave from the Fire Service pending the outcome of these charges against him. Because this is a personnel matter, the county has not released any additional information.
