TOMAHAWK, Ky. — A Martin County man is facing a felony insurance fraud charge, after he allegedly lied to police about his side-by-side being stolen.

A Kentucky State Police trooper was called to the home of Larry Delong, 62, of Tomahawk, on Sunday over the alleged theft. Delong told police he had been gone fishing all weekend and that the vehicle was gone when he came back home. He said he also asked his neighbors if they had seen anything suspicious, but they had told him they were gone all weekend for their child’s wrestling tournament.

Delong also provide photos of the vehicle, showing a black and blue 2021 Kawasaki, which he said was worth about $10,000.

The officer then went to ask neighbors if they had seen anything, only to learn that they had seen Delong at home all weekend, that they had also been home that weekend because wrestling season was over, and that Delong had been riding the black and blue side-by-side for several weeks, but had instead been riding a red-and-orange one.

When police went back to confront Delong about the discrepancies, he allegedly admitted that he lied and said that he had left the side-by-side at an old strip mine, hoping someone would steal it or burn it. He also said he knew he wouldn’t be able to sell it for what it was worth, so he was hoping to turn it in to insurance instead.

Delong has now been charged with insurance fraud over $10,000, a felony punishable by 5-to-10 years in prison, as well as a misdemeanor charge of falsely reporting an incident to police.

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Residents leery of water boards management.

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PIKEVILLE, Ky. — In commemoration of National Police Officers Memorial Week, Kentucky State Police Post 9 in Pikeville will honor fallen troopers on Thursday, May 13.

Those to be honored include:

Trooper Jerome Scott Clifton, 30, passed away on Oct. 1, 1980, after being shot while attempting to arrest a shooting suspect in a domestic disturbance incident in Pike County. Trooper Clifton was assigned to Post 9 Pikeville and was a nine-year veteran of the Kentucky State Police. He was survived by his wife and two daughters. He is buried at Davidson Memorial Gardens in Ivel in Floyd County. In honor of his service and sacrifice, the US 23 railroad bridge between Allen and Dwale has been designated the Trooper Jerome “Butch” Clifton Memorial Bridge.

Trooper Johnny Gordon Adkins Post 9, Pikeville, died as a result of injury suffered on November 19, 1995, while attempting to arrest a suspect in Martin County. He is buried at Saltwell Cemetery in Inez.

Trooper Jonathan Kyle Leonard, age 28, was involved in a two vehicle crash on US 119, in the community of Sidney in Pike County. Trooper Leonard was assigned to Post 9 Pikeville and had served with the Kentucky State Police for three years. In honor of his service and sacrifice, Route 468 in Pike County was named the “Trooper Jonathan K. Leonard Highway” in June of 2008. This was by fiscal court resolution.

KSP Post 9 will do a wreath presentation at the burial site of each fallen Trooper. Friends, family and co-workers of the fallen Troopers are welcome to attend.

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Area high school students learn about mental health, drugs, crisis intervention and more.

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INEZ, Ky. — A father and son were arrested in Martin County over the weekend, after deputies found a sizable portion of meth during a traffic stop.

Gary Lee Gamble Sr., 65, of Inez, and Gary Lee Gamble Jr., 47, of Paintsville, were stopped around 8 p.m. Sunday. During the stop, officers discovered about 16 grams of meth, along with scales and plastic bags.

Gary Lee Gamble Sr. was arrested and charged with meth trafficking, meth possession and possession of a controlled substance. His son was charged with meth possession.

Both were lodged in the Big Sandy Regional Detention Center, in Paintsville.

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LONDON, Ky. — An investigation into inmate assaults at the Martin County federal prison has concluded, with the sixth and final defendant being sentenced on Wednesday.

Michael Childers, 47, of Harold, who worked as a lieutenant at U.S. Penitentiary Big Sandy, was sentenced to 17 months in prison for falsifying records.

In his plea agreement, he admitted that he and four other prison employees were in the lieutenants’ office in April 2021, when an inmate was brought in to request protective custody. Instead, the guards assaulted the inmate.

Childers admitted to writing an incident report afterward, falsely claiming that the inmate had punched and head-butted him first. He said he did so to impede any investigation into the assault.

The other employees involved have already been sentenced for their crimes. They include:

• Lt. Terry Melvin, 48 months for conspiracy against rights and violating civil rights. Melvin also informed prosecutors that the prison had an “unofficial policy” of assaulting inmates who requested protective custody in order to reduce the population of the special housing unit.
• Lt. Kevin Pearce, 66 months for writing false reports about inmate assaults.
• Case management coordinator Samuel Patrick, 36 months for deprivation of rights.
• Captain’s secretary Clinton Pauley, 40 months for deprivation of rights.

A sixth employee, Lt. Ryan Elliott, who was not involved in the same assault, also pleaded guilty to assaulting another inmate and writing a false report another assault.

The cases were investigated by the FBI and the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Justice.

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LEXINGTON, Ky. — A Martin County man has agreed to plead guilty to a federal gun charge in exchange for having drug charges against him dropped.

Jimmy Cornett, 61, of Tomahawk, appeared in Lexington federal court on Tuesday for a pretrial conference. He had been facing two counts of distributing meth and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Cornett had previously been convicted of similar charges in 2010.

On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to one of the gun charges. In his plea agreement, he admitted selling meth to an undercover informant on two occasions last May. He also admitted selling a shotgun to the informant on the second occasion.

Cornett will face up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced July 9.

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LONDON, Ky. — A former guard at the Martin County federal prison has been sentenced for his role in a conspiracy to abuse inmates.

Terry Melvin, 60, pleaded guilty in January 2025 to conspiracy against rights and deprivation of civil rights.
On Thursday, he was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. The charges stemmed from Melvin’s time as a lieutenant at U.S. Penitentiary Big Sandy.

In his plea agreement, he described an “unofficial” policy of abuse at the prison.

Under Bureau of Prisons rules, inmates who request protective custody due to threats are placed in a special housing unit, or SHU, while their claims are investigated. But Melvin’s plea agreement revealed that he conspired with at least 17 other prison employees, including several senior staff, to reduce the population of the SHU by assaulting inmates.

The plea agreement says inmates were given a chance to withdraw their complaints, and those who did would be returned to their regular housing unit. Those who didn’t would be assaulted by prison employees, then false reports would be filed claiming the abuse was a response to the prisoner attacking a guard.

The plea agreement says prison staff were given promotions and monetary rewards worth thousands to go along with the scheme.

Melvin’s 48-month sentence was less than the 63 months prosecutors had been seeking, but more than the 12 months and one day Melvin had requested.

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Historic courthouse is undergoing a multi-faceted renovation to better benefit the community.

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Orascom Group will be part of the Invest 606 Showcase on April 2.

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