New Haven man facing impersonating officer, explosive weapon charges

NC GAZETTE / WBRT RADIO
STAFF REPORT

Monday, Nov. 20,, 2023 — On Sunday night, Nov. 19, 2023, the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office took a complaint of someone using police equipment earlier in the night. The complaint prompted to officers to obtain a search warrant for a home on Jim Clark Road.

At the home, police found a number of items of concern that appeared to be explosives, and that led them to ask the Kentucky State Police Bomb Squad to respond to the home. Two KSP troopers from the bomb squad arrived at the home to assist the sheriff’s office.

Mason Lyle Johnson, 22, of New Haven, was taken to the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office and interviewed. At 5:57 a.m. Monday, he was taken to the Nelson County Correctional Center and arrested on charges of possession of a destructive device or booby trap device; use of a weapon of mass destruction, third-degree; attempted murder; attempted kidnapping; violation of a Kentucky protective order; and impersonating a peace officer.

Bond was set at $500,000 cash.

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