Bedford man accused of breaking into neighbor’s apartment, ramming door with a bathroom door

BEDFORD — A 37-year-old Bedford man was arrested Sunday after police say he forced his way into a neighbor’s apartment and heavily damaged it, using a door taken from his own bathroom to ram the entrance.

Adam Trent Shoults, of the 1400 block of 13th Street, was arrested Oct. 11 on preliminary charges of burglary of a dwelling, residential entry and criminal mischief, according to a probable cause affidavit filed by the Bedford Police Department.

Police were called to the building at about 11:39 a.m. after a resident returned home to find his front door forced open and his living room destroyed, according to the affidavit. The man told Officer Michael Bell that he had cleaned the second-floor apartment before leaving early that morning. Nothing appeared to have been stolen, but many of his belongings were damaged, he said. He also found a black door inside his apartment that had not been there when he left.

While photographing the scene, police found what appeared to be blood on a wall in the building’s common area, on the damaged door, on several items inside the apartment and on the door to Shoults’ apartment across the hall.

A woman who shares that apartment with Shoults arrived but could not get in because something was blocking the door from the inside, police said. Shoults refused to let her in and became uncooperative, according to the affidavit. She identified the black door found in the neighbor’s apartment as the bathroom door from her own unit.

While officers waited outside, another resident of the building told police he had heard loud noises in the common area early that morning and stepped out to see Shoults ramming the neighbor’s door with the black door. He said Shoults became aggressive with him when he asked what he was doing.

Bell applied for a search warrant, which was approved by Judge Nikirk at 1:35 p.m. After the warrant was signed, Shoults came out on his own and was taken into custody, police said.

When officers searched Shoults’ apartment at about 1:57 p.m., they found it in a similar state of disarray, with no door on the bathroom and two sets of hinges still attached to the frame. More apparent blood was found throughout the apartment, and officers collected DNA swabs, according to the affidavit.

At the jail, Shoults was read his rights and declined to answer questions, police said. Officers photographed cuts on both of his hands and a scrape on his left elbow.

The charges listed in a probable cause affidavit are preliminary. Formal charges are determined by the Lawrence County Prosecutor’s Office. Shoults is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.