Salisbury Man Convicted of Kidnapping, Assault and Related Charges
A Wicomico County judge has convicted a 30 year old Salisbury man. Wicomico County Judge S. James Sarbanes, after a 3-day bench trial, convicted Tyler Gaskins of kidnapping, 1st degree assault, 3-counts of and 2nd degree assault, violation of a protective order, witness tampering and perjury. Sentencing has been postponed so that a pre-sentence investigation could be conducted – Gaskins will remain behind bars pending sentencing.
Court records show that on May 2, 2023, Gaskins, under the impression that his girlfriend had been cheating on him, assaulted her in their home. The following day, the assault continued and included strangling the victim and punching her with such force
in her chest that he broke her sternum. The Defendant threatened to kill the victim if she did not get into his car. When she gave in to Gaskins’ demands, he drove her to her ex-boyfriend’s residence to confront him about the alleged cheating. While there, Gaskins entered the ex-boyfriend’s home and assaulted him with a knife before fleeing the residence. Following the assaults, the victim obtained a Protective Order against Gaskins. However, while Gaskins was pending trial, he contacted the victim numerous times, instructing her to take out false charges against her ex-boyfriend to help Gaskins get out of jail. Subsequently, Gaskins falsified his own criminal charges against the ex-boyfriend.
Jamie Dykes, Wicomico County State’s Attorney, said, “This case is an example of how dangerous and explosive domestic violence can be. The violence typically includes not only physical assault but manipulation of victims as seen here. I am proud of the effort by my Office and the Maryland State Police to ensure that justice was done in this case.”
