West accused of clubbing man in Eureka store

Authorities arrested a Eureka man after he allegedly struck, unprovoked, another man in the head with a billy club inside a local convenience store on New Year’s Eve.

Kenneth Lee West, 60, faces an assault with a deadly weapon charge following the alleged attack. He is being held on a $50,000 bond.

Deputy Dan Holskey of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office began investigating the incident after receiving a call from the victim at 7:15 p.m., Dec. 31, who said he was attacked while shopping for a phone card for his grandfather in a Eureka store, court documents said.

The victim told Holskey he was in the beef jerky aisle when West approached him, said, “Hey, mother [expletive]” and clubbed him on the left side of the head.

Reviewing surveillance footage several days later, Holskey watched the victim walk in and browse the wares. According to court documents, West entered later with the club hidden behind his right leg.

He appeared to speak with the victim before striking. The blow knocked the victim into a shelf, court documents said. The victim then staggered toward the front of the store, clutching the left side of his face while West followed.

When the victim met with Holskey for an interview, the deputy noted he had a black eye and complained of soreness on the left side of his head. The victim told Holskey he suffered from jaw pain, headaches, and memory loss and had passed blood through his sinus cavity since the attack.

The victim recounted the alleged assault and said that West told him “there’s more to come” before leaving the store, according to court documents.

The victim told Holskey that he knew West. The two used methamphetamine together, but he avoided West after the other man got angry with him over the summer. At one point, West threatened to shoot him, the victim said, according to court documents.

The victim believed West was “very high” on methamphetamine when the attack occurred, Holskey wrote in his affidavit.

Holskey also learned from the victim that West had carried the club around all summer, telling people he had named it after another individual he planned to attack with it. The victim described the weapon as homemade and containing extra weight.

He also accused West of carrying a Kimber-brand .45 caliber, semi-automatic handgun and threatening to kill a Eureka police officer.

The victim later sought treatment for his injuries in Eureka and then Whitefish Medical Center, court documents said.

Holskey wrote that West, a known drug user and dealer, has past drug convictions in Montana. He was recently released from probation and parole.

“West has a history of violence and appears to be getting more aggressive and violent over the past several months,” Holskey wrote.

West appeared in Lincoln County Justice Court on Jan. 9. He is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 22.