With the search now stretching from hours into days, police are hoping to wear down the suspect, 32-year-old Joseph Couch. A video released by Kentucky State Police shows the thousands of acres of thick woods that authorities are investigating through coordinated operations on the ground and in the air.
State Police Master Trooper Scotty Pennington said it's a tricky environment for a manhunt.
“The search for Joseph Couch continues by state, local and federal partners. The video below provides a snapshot of the vast area we have to cover.” Trooper Scottie Pennington, KSP Post 11 pic.twitter.com/fWYOsvvS4k
— KY State Police (@kystatepolice) September 9, 2024
"There's more to it than just the woods — sinkholes, caves. You know, there's (sic) animals out there, there's snakes, there's all kinds of stuff. So you got to use caution," he told reporters Monday.
Digging into Couch's records, police learned he was in the Army Reserve as a combat engineer with no deployments.
According to documents reviewed by the Lexington Herald-Leader, Couch reportedly sent a text to his ex-wife shortly before the shootings that said, "I'm going to kill a lot of people." In a separate text, he indicated an intent to kill himself. For now, police say they have no way of knowing if Couch is still alive or even confined to the area where they are searching.
"It will probably expand and that's just the job we we signed up for," Pennington said. "We're going to go as far as we can go until something leads us somewhere else. This ain't something we're going to pack up and go home."
KSP is offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to Couch's arrest.
Meanwhile, more than a dozen school districts shut down Monday as a result of the search, a decision that could stretch further into the week if the manhunt drags on.
