Gary L. Thomas Gets 15 Years for Kentucky Carjacking Rampage

Mount Sterling’s Gary L. Thomas, 31, is headed to federal prison for 15 years after a high-speed, armed carjacking rampage across Eastern Kentucky. Sentenced today by U.S. Senior District Court Judge Joseph M. Hood in Lexington, Thomas admitted to stealing a Ford pickup near Morehead on March 18, 2017 — then flooring it westbound on I-64 at speeds nearing 120 mph, weaving across shoulders and forcing vehicles off the road.

Armed with a .380 caliber pistol found in the stolen truck, Thomas wrecked the vehicle in Clark County — then immediately turned predator. As a good Samaritan stopped to help, Thomas pointed the firearm at the man and robbed him of his 2005 Ford F250. He took off in the second stolen truck, wrecked that one too, then fled on foot. Law enforcement caught him shortly after, ending a violent spree that terrorized motorists and first responders.

Thomas previously pleaded guilty in November 2017 to federal charges of carjacking and use of a firearm during a crime of violence. Judge Hood ordered the 15-year sentence to run consecutively to a 15-year state parole revocation — time Thomas was already serving. At the time of the offenses, he was on parole for prior state convictions, now fully revoked.

The court also ordered Thomas to pay $11,000 in restitution to the victim whose truck was stolen at gunpoint. Under federal sentencing rules, he must serve at least 85 percent of his term — roughly 12 years and nine months — before becoming eligible for release. Upon release, he’ll face five years under federal probation supervision.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Mt. Sterling Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department, and Clark County Sheriff’s Department. Robert M. Duncan, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, said the coordinated takedown reflects the power of interagency cooperation in violent crime cases.

This prosecution was part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the DOJ’s nationwide initiative to combat violent crime by uniting federal, state, and local law enforcement. With Attorney General Jeff Sessions pushing PSN’s revival in October 2017, cases like Thomas’s highlight the program’s focus: swift, severe consequences for armed offenders who endanger public safety.

RELATED: Logan Man Sentenced for Arch Coal Kickback Scheme

RELATED: Indiana Couple Gets Time for Texas Bank Heist