Lexington man takes son hostage in 14-hour standoff

A Lexington man was arrested after police say he took his son hostage Saturday afternoon and engaged in a standoff with police that did not end until Sunday morning.

Mitchell Deane Keiser, 52, barricaded his son at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday in a unit at Eastridge Apartments at 2800 Alumni Drive, according to court documents.

Holly Keiser, who is the wife of Mitchell and mother of their son, told police that she had a phone call with her son earlier Saturday, according to court documents. During the phone call, Holly Keiser learned that her husband would not allow his son to leave the apartment unit and was upset because he could not use Holly Keiser’s vehicle to go to work.

Holly Keiser and Mitchell Keiser have been separated for about seven years. Holly Keiser and her son both have a domestic violence order against Mitchell Keiser because of his violent tendencies, according to a criminal complaint.

When police arrived to the apartment unit, Mitchell Keiser would not allow police inside and allegedly said he had a gun, according to court documents. After hearing the voice of the son inside the apartment, police called in the Emergency Response Unit, which provides support in certain situations, including hostages.

Keiser was arrested at about 4:40 a.m. Sunday following a 14-hour standoff. Court documents did not indicate if there were any injuries related to the standoff.

Mitchell Keiser was lodged in the Lexington jail. He was charged with first-degree unlawful imprisonment and two counts of a DVO violation. He is scheduled to be arraigned at 1 p.m. Monday.

This story was originally published December 10, 2017 at 1:23 PM with the headline "Lexington man takes son hostage in 14-hour standoff."