A former inmate at a high-security federal prison in Eastern Kentucky has been charged with killing a fellow prisoner in 2024, according to court documents.
Daviian Roberts, 35, is accused of killing Michael Smith in October 2024 at USP Big Sandy, located in Martin County. The prison, built on a former surface mine, houses up to 1,216 inmates.
Roberts’ indictment does not provide details about the circumstances of the alleged killing. It is also unclear why the investigation took nearly a year and a half before charges were filed.
Additional Assault Charges
In addition to the murder charge, Roberts faces three counts of assaulting, resisting or impeding correctional officers. Court documents allege that on March 4, 2025, he attacked three officers at United States Penitentiary Big Sandy using “a deadly or dangerous weapon” while they were performing their official duties.
No hearings have yet been scheduled in connection with either the murder or assault charges.
Transferred to Colorado Supermax
Roberts is now being held at USP Florence ADMAX, the federal supermax facility in Florence, Colorado, often referred to as the “Alcatraz of the Rockies.”
The prison houses some of the nation’s most dangerous offenders, including:
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Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán
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Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
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Ramzi Yousef
Before the latest charges, Roberts had been scheduled for release in January 2035, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.