Former FMC guard pleads guilty to inmate assault, cover up in Lexington
A former guard at a federal prison in Lexington pleaded guilty of crimes related to assaulting an inmate and falsifying reports to cover it up.
Ryan Carnahan, 32, pleaded guilty to charges of deprivation of rights resulting in bodily injury and making a false report May 19.
Carnahan was previously a correctional officer at the Federal Medical Center in Lexington, which serves as a men’s and women’s federal facility on Leestown Road. According to its website, the prison houses a total of 1,252 inmates.
In June 2025, Carnahan was working at FMC Lexington when he went into the Special Housing Unit cell of an inmate after getting into an argument, according to his plea agreement.
Carnahan was with two other officers who all entered the cell without the inmate, or his cellmate, being placed in handcuffs, according to court documents.
Carnahan slapped the inmate in the face when he entered the cell, according to his plea agreement. The inmate hit Carnahan, who returned punches onto the inmate.
After the fight, Carnahan wrote a report that the inmate was handcuffed at the time. In addition, Carnahan said he was searching the cell when the inmate “slipped his handcuffs” and assaulted him, the plea agreement states.
Carnahan admitted these were false statements that he made to try and cover up his assault on the inmate.
Carnahan’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 20. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
