Former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin was arrested Thursday after months of defying court orders in an ongoing family court and child support dispute, according to local media outlets. Bevin, a Republican and longtime ally of President Donald Trump who served as governor from 2015 to 2019, was taken into custody by the Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office and later booked into Louisville Metro Corrections. The arrest stems from an active bench warrant issued by Jefferson County Family Court Judge Angela Johnson after Bevin was found in civil contempt.
The warrant, filed in June, requires Bevin to spend 60 days in jail and pay a $500 fine. Newsweek reached out to Bevin's lawyer via online form on Friday for comment. According to local reports, the Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office acted on a tip that was called into 911.
Deputies apprehended Bevin in Paris, Kentucky, where he was working as an extra on the set of The Greatest Christmas Gift. The owner of the property where the movie was being filmed, Jessica Mohr, told Louisville Public Media the sheriff arrived on set looking for Bevin. The court ordered both parents to submit comprehensive financial records—including tax returns and bank statements—as it weighs child support and financial provisions.
While Glenna Bevin complied with the disclosures, Johnson ruled that the former governor repeatedly failed to turn over the mandatory documentation. Jonah Bevin was one of four children Matt and his wife adopted from Ethiopia in 2012. Jonah alleged that his adoptive parents abandoned him at age 17 at a youth facility in Jamaica that was later shut down amid allegations of abusive conditions.
After authorities intervened, Jonah said he was left to support himself and began seeking financial assistance, the Kentucky Lantern reported last year. Jonah responded to his father’s arrest by expressing sadness rather than celebration. In a statement released Friday to local outlet WLKY, Jonah said that “the sad reality is that adoption is supposed to be forever,” adding that his parents’ actions had made clear to him that they had not felt that kind of love for him “in a long time.” His attorneys, John Helmers Jr. and Melina Hettiaratchi, emphasized to the local station that the arrest was not something Jonah wanted, saying there was “no cause for celebration” when enforcing a parent’s obligations requires an arrest.
They said Jonah had sought only the basic financial support he needed to rebuild his life and expressed hope that the court’s action would lead to accountability. The dispute has been ongoing for months. Bevin was previously held in contempt in May after failing to appear in court and avoided jail time by paying a $250 fine, the Kentucky Lantern reported.
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