World
Lauren Winans: Kentucky woman accused of sodomy, incest involving minor; husband is a cop
By: Hindustan Times World
Published: 24 October 2026
Photo / Illustration: Haldwani Times News Desk
<p>Lauren Winans, a Kentucky woman, was arrested on Thursday and charged with sodomy and incest allegedly involving a minor.</p>
<p>Lauren Winans is a Kentucky woman accused of sodomizing a minor. (Facebook/Lauren Winans)She stands accused of sexually abusing and sodomizing a victim younger than 12, sometime between January 1, 2022 and November 20, 2022, as per court papers from an indictment in Nelson County, which was accessed by several publications.</p>
<p>The indictment alleged that the 31-year-old from Bardstown ‘committed the offense of sodomy in the first degree by engaging in deviate sexual intercourse with C.G.W., a person less than twelve years of age’. The victim has been referred to as C.G.W. in all three counts, in the court papers.</p>
<p>Winans, meanwhile, has also been accused of having sex with a family member, who's younger than 12, as per the court papers. She ‘committed the offense of incest when she had sexual intercourse or deviate sexual intercourse with a person whom she knew to be an ancestor who was less than twelve years of age,’ the documents alleged, as per reports. It remains unclear if the underage family member was the same victim mentioned in the other charges against Winans. It is also unclear how they're related.</p>
<p>Winans is currently being held in the the LaRue County Detention Center. Her arraignment is scheduled for November 5. She has not yet posted the $250,000 bail she's being held on, the New York Post reported.</p>
<p>She could get life in jail if convicted on the top count of first-degree sodomy. It remains unclear who her lawyer is, at the time of writing.</p>
<p>Winans' husband, Andy, is in law enforcement.</p>
<p>The Nelson County Sheriff's Department put out a statement confirming her husband used to work there, but is now a Bardstown police officer.</p>
<p>“The Kentucky State Police (KSP) is the primary investigating agency regarding the allegations involving Lauren Winans. The Nelson County Sheriff’s Office was not aware of these allegations, holds no details regarding the case, and is not involved in the investigation. Inquiries should be directed to KSP. Circulated Photos: Regarding the photos featuring an agency vehicle, our administration deemed the conduct completely inappropriate. Prompt disciplinary action was taken at the time of the incident. Personnel Clarification: Andy Winans is no longer employed by the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office. He resigned from our agency and joined the Bardstown Police Department in early 2026. Our office remains fully committed to accountability, transparency, and upholding the trust of the Nelson County community,” the statement read.</p>
<p>Shuvrajit has over seven years of experience covering US, India, and world news. An English Literature postgraduate from Jadavpur University, Shuvrajit started off covering entertainment, gaming and all things pop culture. There were brief periods away from the media industry, with short stints in content marketing, ed-tech and academic editing. However, the newsroom beckoned and over the last few jobs, Shuvrajit has exceedingly focused on team functioning as well, including tracking news and assigning tasks, working on everyday breaking news, framing detailed coverage plans, and creating immersive and data-driven stories. In his time as a digital journalist, he has covered a Lok Sabha election, multiple state elections, Union Budgets and award ceremonies. He has also helped in planning content for company event panels in the past. For work, Shuvrajit enjoys dabbling with data visualization, editing tools, and AI chatbots and attempts to incorporate AI workflows in everyday tasks. He is deeply interested in geopolitics, sports, films and music. Prompting is a new fascination for Shuvrajit now. Apart from that, he can be found doom-scrolling, sharing memes, or cheering on his favorite football team.Read More</p>
