VERSAILLES, Ky. (FOX 56) — A Kentucky mother and father told FOX 56 news on Thursday that they were afraid for their lives and those of their family, hearing that the man accused of stabbing six-year-old Logan Tipton in 2015 had been released from prison a full decade ahead of his 20-year assault sentence due to good behavior.
“He snaps, just snaps, and stands up with me sitting on top of him, and he throws me across the room. I mean, maybe 10-15 feet he throws me across the room and goes after [Koral],” Dean Tipton, Logan’s father, said.
On Dec. 7, 2015, Ronald Exantus traveled from Indianapolis to Versailles and attacked the family in their sleep.
Koral Tipton, Logan’s sister, said she doesn’t know what he might do next.
New details shed light on what led to deadly Nicholasville apartment shooting
“He told me he was going to kill every one of us,” Dean added. “So now, I’ve got to be on extra guard to protect my kids because I will not lose another one, not like this.”
Exantus’ release has sparked federal attention, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announcing on Oct. 4 that officials would be looking into the case.
“I can confirm the White House is looking into this,” Leavitt wrote on X around 8:17 a.m. on Saturday. “It’s wholly unacceptable for a child killer to walk free after just several years in prison.
Lindsey Tichenor, a Republican senator for Kentucky’s 6th district, wrote on social media that the justice system was terribly broken.
“This is a disgusting miscarriage of justice,” Sen. Tichenor wrote. “If you’re insane enough to stab a little boy to death in his sleep, you’re too insane to ever be released.”
Heather Tipton, Logan’s mom, said that despite the trauma of the attack, the loss of her son, and the unexpectedly early release of his alleged killer, she promised herself to keep the family together.
LATEST KENTUCKY NEWS:
“I made myself promise I wasn’t going to let this tear us apart, because statistically, Dean and I should be divorced, or our family should have just broken apart at the seams statistically. And I made a promise that that wasn’t going to happen, and I’m not going to let it happen.”
In 2018, Exantus was found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, but he was convicted of assaulting other family members. As of Oct. 1, Exantus was released from prison early for good behavior and ordered to six months of mandatory re-entry supervision in Florida.
Dustin Massengill and Corey Elam contributed to this story.
