Authorities paused the hunt for a man who wounded five people on Interstate 75 on Saturday as the sun fell over the southeastern Kentucky mountains Sunday night with plans to return to the hunt Monday morning.
Kentucky State Police have taken the lead on the manhunt for Joseph Couch, a former National Guardsman believed to be the gunman., the Louisville Courier-Journal said.
“We have solid evidence. His vehicle was at the scene. A firearm that he purchased yesterday was at the scene,” said Michael E. Stansbury, special agent in charge of the Louisville FBI office. “We have interviewed people; we feel pretty confident this is the individual.”
Laurel County Sheriff John Root, whose office is handling the criminal investigation, said Couch legally bought the AR-style weapon believed used in the shooting at a gun shop in London on Saturday before the shooting.
Root said that Couch is believed to still be armed.
Laurel County Sheriff’s Captain Richard Dalrymple told reporters the shots fired early Saturday evening came from about “30 feet down from the top of a cliff” alongside Interstate 75. He said Couch served in the National Guard for four years in an engineering battalion and added that investigators searched the suspect’s home Sunday evening.
Earlier, officials reported that five people were wounded in the shooting, CrimeOnline reported. Three victims were taken to CHI St. Joseph Health in London, and two others were taken to the University of Kentucky’s Albert B. Chandler Hospital in Lexington. On Monday morning, the University of Kentucky said its two patients were in “good condition,” the Courier Journal said. A statement from CHI St. Joseph acknowledged receipt of “several patients who were treated and released.”
The gunfire rang out at about 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, creating chaos on the highway, a major north-south highway that links the Miami are with Sault Ste. Marie in Michigan. The highway was shut down for about three hours on Saturday while first responders cleared the scene and transported victims to hospitals.
Late Saturday, investigators found a Toyota SUV registered to Couch just off a US Forest Service road in the heavily wooded area above the interstate. On Sunday, they found an AR-style rifle and several loaded magazines in the same area.
Root said the search area includes thousands of “very secluded” acres that cover “a lot of National Forest” area. The search is hindered — and stops at dark — because of the rough terrain and danger to search crews.
Multiple agencies are participating in the search with ground crews and air crews, including thermal cameras, and several schools are closed.
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[Featured image: Laurel County Sheriff’s Office]
