LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kentucky State Police (KSP) announced an increase in the reward Tuesday for information leading to the arrest of the man accused of shooting several cars and wounding five people on I-75.
KSP said the Crime Stoppers reward was raised to $15,000 with an additional $10,000 donations, totaling $25,000 for the arrest and capture of Joseph Couch.
Police are still unclear on the whereabouts of Couch four days after the shooting but remain optimistic he will be found.
Trooper Scottie Pennington said tips have been pouring into police, but they have turned up nothing so far. They don’t believe Couch has left the area.
“Give us some time to see if we can locate Mr. Couch in this forest,” Pennington said. “This is not a small area. This is not like going across the roads and looking in the woods and finding somebody, this is the national forest. This is thousands and thousands of acres where Mr. Couch could have went.”
Regardless of what kind of tips they receive, police said they will investigate them.
Temperatures have been going back and forth in the region and food has likely been scarce for Couch. Police are hoping those factors will play a role in him surrendering.
“I hope he’s worn out and eventually, he’ll walk out of them woods,” Pennington said.
Police didn’t rule out if Couch may have died, despite him texting a woman hours before the shooting that he would “kill himself” after committing the egregious act.
If so, police believe it would help them.
“Nature takes care of itself. You can see a lot of things from the air – buzzards start to fly and if your body is decaying out there, that could help in this investigation,” Pennington said. “Not saying that will happen, but that’s human life evolving. That’s what happens.”
He said crews will leave no stone unturned until Couch is found.
Gov. Andy Beshear called the manhunt a “scary time” and said he stays in touch with local leaders and law enforcement agencies for regular reports.
In the meantime, communities surrounding the area of Exit 49 are being asked to remain vigilant by locking their doors, checking their security systems – like Ring doorbells – and suspending activities until Couch is located.
“We’re going to stay in the woods until we find him," Pennington said.
If you have information on Couch's whereabouts, you are asked to call the Laurel County Sheriff's Department at (606) 878-7000 or 911.
Case Background:
Joseph Couch is facing assault and attempted murder charges for each of the five victims wounded in the shooting.
According to the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office, Couch drove to a rural stretch of I-75 just north of London, Kentucky, and began randomly firing at motorists around 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
All five victims are expected to survive.
Before the shooting took place, the former Army Reservist is accused of telling a woman via text message that he was “going to kill a lot of people. Well at least try” with a follow up message saying he would kill himself after committing the act.
The message prompted the woman to contact authorities.
When Couch was originally named a person of interest, a gun shop employee contacted police telling them Couch purchased a Cobalt AR-15 and 1,000 rounds of ammunition.
Police recovered Couch’s vehicle, the AR-15 and a duffle bag with “Couch” written on it. Police eventually upgraded him from a person of interest to a suspect on Sunday.
Police believe Couch acted alone in the shooting and have not speculated on a motive.
The search for Couch has left the community on edge and area schools closed for a second day.
Police have poured many resources in the search efforts for Couch. They’ve suspended their searches during the night because of the heavily wooded and hilly terrain off Exit 49.
Police said they do keep the area patrolled overnight.