BOYLE COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — A man is in jail in Boyle County, accused of getting underage victims high and committing unlawful sexual acts on them. Police in Perryville say he could face up to 70 years in prison if he's convicted on all the charges.
Perryville Police Chief Parker Hatter said this started out as another kind of investigation regarding Kobe Ford.
"We were not looking into him as far as these unlawful sexual acts. It was basically a joint investigation we had been working with Harrodsburg P.D. and it was involving narcotics," said Hatter. "During the course of that investigation, we found some evidence that he was talking to underage girls ranging anywhere from 16 to 13, and basically in these conversations, he was trying to solicit into sexual acts, or was talking about former sexual acts that had happened, and these ranged back from 2017 until present day,"
Hatter said Ford was already in jail when they made the initial discovery. Police said Ford had been communicating with an underage girl for the purpose of a sexual relationship while he was incarcerated. On their Facebook page, police said Ford was charged with getting minors high and then committing unlawful sexual acts. Hatter said that Facebook post led more people to reach out.
"More and more victims started coming up, so we started reaching out and they started calling us. We started getting messages on social media, calling here at city hall, wanting to talk, so we brought the victims into here and we started our investigation and that's how we came to where we're at today," Hatter said.
Police said Ford has been indicted on two charges of unlawful transaction with a minor for a sex act as well as unlawful transaction with a minor for a controlled substance, and five counts of unlawful use of electronic means to induce a minor to engage in sexual activities. Hatter said this is a good reminder for parents to keep a close eye on their kids' devices.
"There's so many ways out there now. There's different apps and ways these predators can get in contact with your kid. You see children now 9, 10, 11 years old have a smartphone. It's just a good practice. It may not be a popular amongst your children, but it's good to monitor their phones, just to see who they're talking to, who their friends are," Hatter said.
Ford faces up to 70 years in prison if convicted on all charges. The investigation is still ongoing and additional charges in Boyle County as well as other counties are possible.
If you are or know an individual that has been a potential victim of Ford's, authorities are asking you to contact the Perryville Police Department or the Boyle/Mercer County Victim's Advocates.
Ford is being held in the Boyle County Detention Center.
