Former president of KY Fraternal Order of Police lodge pleads guilty to fraud
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- Kevin Straw pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud after admitting to stealing $187,024.45.
- Straw misappropriated $49,760 via cash withdrawals from the lodge account.
- Straw faces up to 20 years, a $250,000 fine, restitution, and sentencing on Aug. 11.
A former president of a Fraternal Order of Police lodge in Louisville could spend up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Kevin Straw, 40, of Lexington, pleaded guilty Thursday after admitting to stealing $187,024.45 from the lodge he led, the State Fraternal Order of Police and investment fraud victims. Along with a maximum 20-year-prison sentence, Straw could be fined $250,000 and must pay back the $187,024.45 he stole from the victims, according to court documents.
Prosecutors said Straw is the former president for the Fraternal Order of Police’s Metropolitan Lodge 32 in Louisville and the former vice president of the Kentucky State Fraternal Order of Police, based in Frankfort. Between 2021 and 2024, he devised multiple schemes to steal the money.
As president of the lodge, Straw misappropriated $49,760 through cash withdrawals from the lodge’s account. Court documents say he falsely claimed the money was being transferred to another account operated by the lodge, but he used the misappropriated funds for personal use.
Straw stole $80,200 from at least ten people through an investment fraud scheme. Court documents say he tricked people to invest in him with false documentation, and spent their money on personal expenses.
Straw also requested reimbursement of $41,562.97 from the state Fraternal Order of Police for faulty travel expenses and charged $15,501.48 in personal expenses to the state Fraternal Order of Police credit card, according to the attorney’s office.
Straw is released on bond until sentencing, which is scheduled for Aug. 11. He is not allowed to travel outside of Kentucky or contact any of the victims, according to court documents.
