A Clinton County grand jury has indicted the former longtime director of Trooper Island, the Kentucky State Police youth camp on Dale Hollow Lake, on a felony theft charge alleging he took money from the nonprofit camp over nearly six years. Jonathan Biven, 46, is accused of unlawfully taking or exercising control over funds belonging to Trooper Island between January 1, 2019, and September 30, 2024, with intent to deprive the organization of its property, according to prosecutors.
The grand jury returned its indictment on August 6, following an investigation led by Kentucky State Police Detective Cameron Allen and the agency's Special Investigations Branch, according to Barrenside. After the indictment, Biven was booked into the Clinton County Detention Center in Albany before being released to await arraignment. As WHAS11 reports, Biven is charged with theft by unlawful taking of between $10,000 and $1 million, and he is expected in court for arraignment on September 10 at 9 a.m.
Trooper Island sits on a 35-acre island leased from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Dale Hollow Lake, near the Cumberland and Clinton county line. The camp was established in 1965 under former Kentucky State Police Director Colonel James E. “Ted” Bassett, per the agency's own account. It has since served more than 40,000 children from across the Commonwealth, hosting roughly 700 underprivileged kids each summer at no cost to their families, with 68 former campers later joining the Kentucky State Police and 18 becoming civilian KSP employees.
A Nonprofit That Runs on Donations, Not Tax Dollars
What makes the allegations especially fraught is how Trooper Island is funded. The camp operates as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity, funded through donations, grants, tournaments, and an annual car raffle, according to WEKU. That structure means the six-year span of alleged financial discrepancies falls squarely on donor generosity rather than public budgets, raising the stakes for an institution whose credibility depends on the trust of the people who give to it.
The scale of that generosity has been considerable. The camp received a $150,000 donation to build its first dedicated oral health clinic. The clinic was intended to provide annual dental screenings and hygiene education for hundreds of children who attend the weeklong sessions each summer.
How the Discrepancies Came to Light
Biven was appointed commander of Trooper Island in December 2014 after serving as a public information officer for KSP Post 3 in Bowling Green, the station notes. He led the camp for nearly a decade before retiring from Kentucky State Police on September 30, 2024. In September 2024, shortly before his retirement, the agency says it uncovered potential misappropriation of camp funds, prompting detectives to comb through financial transaction records tied to the camp.
Master Trooper Scott Ferrell stepped in as acting director starting October 1, 2024, the day after Biven's retirement took effect, and was later appointed the camp's permanent director, per the same account. Kentucky State Police ultimately referred the case to the Clinton County Commonwealth Attorney's Office, which took it to the grand jury this month. The agency said in a statement that it had discovered potential misappropriation of camp funds.
Life After the State Police
Since leaving Kentucky State Police, Biven has worked as a public safety officer at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport, a role confirmed by Natalie Chaudoin. The Louisville Regional Airport Authority placed him on administrative leave with pay on August 7, pending further investigation, WHAS11 reports. That leave is an administrative action reported separately from the criminal case.
Biven's record includes an earlier public controversy from his time as a trooper. In March 2015, a civil lawsuit against him was settled out of court over a September 2011 fatal traffic collision in Barren County, in which his patrol cruiser crossed the center line after he reached for a soft drink, killing driver Nurcan Ceylan, according to WKU Public Radio. Police reports at the time cited driver inattention as the cause of the crash.
Prosecutors allege theft by unlawful taking involving property or funds valued between $10,000 and $1,000,000. Key details remain unresolved, including the precise amount prosecutors allege Biven took and the specific financial mechanisms involved in the six-year span under investigation. Biven has not yet entered a plea, and the allegations against him remain unproven pending his September 10 arraignment.
