Grand jury indicts Swope on 30 charges involving a minor

Posted Friday, June 26, 2026 5:02 pm

Justin Swope walks into Calloway District Court for his preliminary hearing last month. (JESSICA PAINE/The Murray Sentinel)

By Jessica Paine/The Murray Sentinel

A Calloway County grand jury indicted former Murray Police Department detective Justin Swope Friday on 27 additional felony sex-crime counts involving a minor, bringing the total number of charges in the county to 30. With the case now in circuit court, Calloway Circuit Judge Andrea Moore increased his bond from $20,000 to $500,000.

Swope resigned from his position as a detective sergeant after he was arrested by the Kentucky State Police last month on two counts of third-degree rape and one count of third-degree sodomy in Calloway County.

The eight-page indictment alleges all 30 counts involve the same minor and span from June 2018 to July 2021. It lists the following charges:

One count of first-degree unlawful transaction with a minor under 16 years of age involving an illegal sex act, a Class B felony;

One count of first-degree unlawful transaction with a minor under 18 years of age involving an illegal sex act, a Class C felony;

11 counts of promoting a sexual performance by a minor under 18 years of age, Class C felonies;

Four counts of third-degree sodomy, Class D felonies;

11 counts of third-degree rape, Class D felonies; and

Two counts of first-degree sexual abuse, Class D felonies.

KSP also filed a separate case against Swope in Trigg County, where he faces two counts of third-degree rape and one count of third-degree sodomy. Prosecutors are expected to present that case to the Trigg County grand jury next month.

Swope is scheduled for arraignment in Calloway Circuit Court at 8:30 a.m. Monday, July 6.

Individuals charged with crimes are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

This is a developing story.