Shooting spree in Laurel County, Kentucky, leads to closure of I-75; estimated 4-6 victims

Due to a shooting, Interstate 75 near London, Kentucky, has been closed for two hours.

There are an estimated four to six victims, said Scottie Pennington, spokesman for the Kentucky State Police, in a phone call with the Courier Journal at around 7:40 p.m. He had no further information about those shot.

The shooter was not caught.

Officers are “still working a very active crime scene,” Pennington said more than an hour after the Laurel County Sheriff’s Department first reported the shooting on social media at 6:36 p.m. “We have no idea where he is,” he said of investigators’ progress in finding a suspect.

The Laurel County Sheriff’s Department identified 32-year-old Joseph A. Couch as a suspect in a social media post. The agency urged anyone with information or knowledge of the suspect’s whereabouts to call London-Laurel County 911.

According to authorities, the closure will take place near exit 49 and US Route 25, about 14 kilometers north of London. Laurel County is about 145 kilometers south of Lexington in eastern Kentucky. It has about 62,000 residents and includes part of the Daniel Boone National Forest.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Governor Andy Beshear said he, along with Kentucky State Police and Homeland Security, are “actively monitoring the situation and offering assistance in any way possible.”

The Laurel County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation with assistance from several other law enforcement agencies, including the Kentucky State Police, Pennington said.

In a Facebook post around 8 p.m., the Mount Vernon Fire Department said I-75 remains closed and a reopening time is unknown. Fire officials are working to divert traffic from I-75 at exits 62 and 59 to Kentucky Route 461.

Beshear confirmed the situation in another post on X.

“Kentucky, we are aware of a shooting on I-75 in Laurel County. Police have closed the interstate at exit 49 in both directions. Please avoid the area. We will provide more details as they become available,” he wrote.

London Mayor Randall Weddle also posted on Facebook warning people to avoid the area.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

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