LONDON, Kentucky — As a grueling manhunt entered its third day Monday for a suspect in a highway shooting that left 12 vehicles hit and five people wounded, authorities vowed to continue the search. Stress levels remained high in a rural area where classes were canceled at some schools.
Authorities have been searching a rugged, hilly area of southeastern Kentucky since Saturday night, when a gunman began shooting at drivers on Interstate 75 near London, a small town of about 8,000 people about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Lexington.
The search was temporarily halted when darkness fell on Sunday evening, but was expected to resume Monday morning.
“We’re not giving up until we get him,” Laurel County Sheriff John Root said Sunday night.
Joseph A. Couch, 32, was first named a person of interest and later a suspect in the shooting after authorities said they found his SUV on a service road near the scene. They later found a semi-automatic weapon nearby that they believe was used in the shooting, said Deputy Gilbert Acciardo, a spokesman for the local sheriff’s office.
On Sunday, as another day of searching ended with no sign of the suspect, Acciardo acknowledged the frustration felt by police officers and people living near the search area.
“As this continues, it becomes more and more stressful for the community and for the officers that are out there because we are looking … and we are trying to find him, but we have not found him,” he said.
State police Capt. Scottie Pennington, a spokesman for the London state police station, said officers from across the state are being drawn in to assist with the manhunt. He described the extensive search area as “walking in a jungle” with machetes needed to cut through brush.
According to Acciardo, it appears the attacker planned the shooting at that location because the location is very remote and the terrain is hilly, rocky and difficult to access.
With the gunman still at large, several area school districts have canceled classes for Monday. Pennington urged residents to lock their doors, keep porch lights on and monitor security cameras. The search has focused on a remote area about eight miles north of London.
Authorities tried to assure residents that they are confident that the suspect will be found.
“We’re doing everything we can do,” Root said, adding: “Just be confident.”
Authorities said Couch bought the gun and about 1,000 rounds of ammunition Saturday morning in London. Couch has a military background and served at least four years in the National Guard, said Capt. Richard Dalrymple of the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities initially said nine vehicles were hit by gunfire, but later raised that number to 12, saying some people didn’t arrive home until they noticed their cars had been hit by bullets. They said the gunman fired a total of 20 to 30 rounds.
Couch last lived in Woodbine, a small community about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of the shooting. Acciardo said authorities found his abandoned vehicle on Saturday and an AR-15 rifle on Sunday in a wooded area near a highway where “he could have been shooting on the interstate.” A cell phone believed to be Couch’s was also found by police, but the battery had been removed.
Some Laurel County residents were on edge as authorities used a drone, helicopter and foot search to search a remote, sparsely populated wooded area just off a busy highway.
Cody Shepherd, who drank a Bloody Mary outside Sunday as he waited to watch a soccer game at the Pour Boyz Sports Lounge in London, said locals were abuzz with speculation. He is a London resident and was at a party Saturday at a friend’s house about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south of where the shooting occurred.
“We listened to the police scanners all night,” he said, adding that they heard sirens and saw a helicopter flying overhead.
On Sunday, several local churches canceled their services. But Rodney Goodlett, pastor of Faith Assembly of God in London, helped direct traffic as parishioners gathered for a morning service. He expected the search to limit attendance.
“It is of course tragic that someone would just commit violent acts,” he said. “You hear things happening in the media all over our country, but when it hits home, it is a bit of a wake-up call.”
Acciardo said authorities are inundated with tips from the public and are following up on every tip to see if it can help them find the shooter. When the search is suspended overnight, specially trained officers are deployed to strategic locations in the woods to prevent the shooter from leaving the area.
“We have to get him,” said Acciardo.