LEXINGTON – An Ohio man was sentenced to 18 months in prison for failure to register as a sex offender while he was residing in Magoffin County.
Phillip Harmon, 42, formerly of Ohio, but most recent address in Salyersville, appeared in federal court in Lexington on May 21, with the court adopting the factual findings of the plea agreement, entered into the record in January, accepted his plea and agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s office and sentenced him to 18 months in prison, to run consecutively to any sentence imposed by Scioto County Court, in Ohio, as well as 10 years supervised release and must comply with all sex offender registration requirements.
According to the plea agreement, Harmon was previously convicted of rape in Scioto County Ohio, in 2008, and sentenced to a term of 10 years incarceration. In 2018 and 2021, he signed documents acknowledging his status and the requirement to register as a sex offender upon his release.
In September 2025 he was located and apprehended in Magoffin County, with Harmon admitting in the plea agreement that after being released from prison in September 2021, he traveled to Magoffin County and resided there, despite never registering as a sex offender in Kentucky at any point. He had lived in Magoffin from September 2021 until his arrest in September 2025.
Harmon also waived the right to appeal the guilty plea and conviction, per the plea agreement, but reserved the right to appeal the sentence.
Harmon was remanded to the custody of U.S. Marshals, and is currently being held at the Woodford County Detention Center.
Editor’s Note: The indictment or charge of a person by a grand jury or otherwise is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
