LONDON, Ky. — As a grueling manhunt stretched into a third day Monday for a suspect in an interstate shooting that struck 12 vehicles and wounded five people, authorities vowed to keep up a relentless search as the stress level remained high for a rural area where some schools canceled classes.
Authorities have been searching a rugged, hilly area of southeastern Kentucky since Saturday evening, when a gunman began shooting at drivers on Interstate 75 near London, a small city of about 8,000 people located about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Lexington. Authorities initially said nine vehicles were struck by gunfire, but later increased that number to 12, saying some people did not realize their cars had been hit by bullets until they arrived home. They said the gunman fired a total of 20 to 30 rounds.
The search was temporarily suspended once darkness fell Sunday night, but was set to resume Monday morning.
“We’re not going to quit until we do lay hands on him,” Laurel County Sheriff John Root said Sunday night.
Joseph A. Couch, 32, was named first as a person of interest and later as a suspect in the shooting after authorities said they recovered his SUV on a service road near the crime scene. They later found a semi-automatic weapon nearby that they believe was used in the shooting, said Deputy Gilbert Acciardo, a spokesperson for the local sheriff’s office.
In the hours prior to the shooting, Couch legally purchased a firearm and about 1,000 rounds of ammunition, sheriff’s office officials said.
On Sunday, as another day of searching was ending without any sign of the suspect, Acciardo acknowledged the frustration that law enforcement officers and people who live near the search area are feeling.
Schools across central Kentucky have cancelled classes for Sep. 9 and authorities have requested that local residents stay vigilant while the manhunt continues.
Though a motive for the shooting remains unknown, the attack appeared to be a “random act” of violence, Acciardo said, according to The Associated Press.
Authorities believe that Couch could still be armed and hiding anywhere in the the densely wooded area near where the gun, ammunition, car and possibly his phone were found, Root said.
State police Master Trooper Scottie Pennington, a spokesman for the London state police post, said troopers are being brought in from around the state to aid the manhunt. He described the extensive search area as “walking in a jungle” with machetes needed to cut through thickets of woods.
“You need to lock your doors. If you have security cameras, make sure you’re constantly watching them, maybe keep your porch lights on,” Pennington said. “Have your cell phone and make sure your phones are charged up because you never know when you might have to contact somebody or law enforcement.”
Couch has a military background, having served in the National Guard for at least four years, said Capt. Richard Dalrymple of the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office.
The suspect most recently lived in Woodbine, a small community about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of the shooting scene. Acciardo said authorities found his abandoned vehicle Saturday and then an AR-15 rifle on Sunday in a wooded area near a highway where “he could have shot down upon the interstate.” A phone believed to be Couch’s was also found by law enforcement, but the battery had been taken out.
Cody Shepherd, sipping a bloody mary outdoors while waiting to watch a football game at the Pour Boyz Sports Lounge in London on Sunday, said locals were abuzz with speculation. A resident of London, he was at a party Saturday at a friend’s house about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south of where the shooting occurred.
“We were listening to the police scanners all night,” Shepherd said, adding they heard sirens and saw a helicopter overhead.
Acciardo added that authorities are being inundated with tips from the public and are following up on each one in case it could help them find the shooter. When the search has been suspended at night, specially trained officers have been deployed in strategic locations in the woods to prevent the gunman from slipping out of the area.
“We’ve got to get him,” Acciardo said.
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You better make sure he’s put away for a long time. That’s attempted murder.!