LOUISVILLE A third day of a laborious hunt for a shooter who opened fire on an interstate highway over the weekend, wounding five people, saw more than a dozen school districts in southeastern Kentucky close on Monday.

Joseph Couch, 32, is the target of a torturous manhunt that entered its third day on Monday following an interstate gunshot that left 12 vehicles damaged. Less than 30 minutes prior, Couch sent a text message threatening to “kill a lot of people,” according to information in an arrest warrant from the authorities.

I have a lot of people to kill. According to the warrant affidavit that was submitted to the court, Joseph Couch, 32, wrote in the text message, “Well, try at least.” According to the affidavit, Couch wrote, “I’ll kill myself afterwards,” in another text message.

The relationship between Couch and the woman who received the texts is not mentioned in the affidavit. Couch is accused of five counts of first-degree assault and criminal attempt to commit murder, according to the document that The Associated Press was able to receive.

The latest 911 calls, which started coming in at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, show a chaotic scene.

They claim that there have been several gunshot casualties on I-75 southbound around the 48; emergency medical services are on their way; the gunman, whose whereabouts are unknown, has made one call.

Another speaker remarked, “The victims have been shot through the windscreen.” “There’s a black SUV on the 49 bridge, who they think might be the shooter.”

Since Saturday evening, when someone started shooting at vehicles on I-75 close to London, a little town of roughly 8,000 people situated about 75 miles south of Lexington, authorities have been searching a rough, hilly region of southeast Kentucky. The density of the search area is shown in the video from the Kentucky State Police.

After police found Couch’s SUV on a service road close to the killing scene with a rifle case inside, they designated him as a person of interest and then a suspect. A semi-automatic gun they later discovered nearby is what investigators think was used in the incident, according to local sheriff’s office spokeswoman Deputy Gilbert Acciardo.

The last place Couch called home was Woodbine, a tiny town 20 miles south of the shooting site.

Shown here is Joseph A. Crouch.

The FBI Louisville Field Office’s special agent in charge, Michael Stansburgy, stated on Sunday that “people are afraid right now.” “They are absolutely entitled to be. This is not an everyday occurrence.

The manager of WarZone Paintball, Andrea Chavez, stated, “We were all just scared.” “There was fear among everybody. Everyone was just calling friends and family to let them know they were alright.”

A spokesman for the London state police post, Master Trooper Scottie Pennington, stated that troopers are being sent in from all around the state to assist with the manhunt. He compared the vast search area to “walking in a jungle,” saying that it required machetes to cut through dense forests.

According to Acciardo, the assailant appeared to have planned the shooting at that place since it is extremely isolated and has difficult-to-navigate, mountainous, and rocky terrain. He stated it was thought the victims were chosen at random.

A third day of a laborious hunt for a shooter who opened fire on an interstate highway over the weekend, wounding five people, saw more than a dozen school districts in southeastern Kentucky close on Monday.

The victims’ faces, elbows, hips, and chests were shot, according to the 911 calls. Law enforcement searched for the shooter in addition to attending to the victims.

Pennington asked locals to watch security cameras, lock their doors, and leave porch lights on. About eight miles north of London, a secluded region was the focus of the search.

Sheriff John Root of Laurel County stated on Sunday night, “We’re not going to give up until we do get our hands on him.”

According to the authorities, Couch bought the gun and roughly 1,000 rounds of ammo on Saturday morning in London. Couch had military experience, according to Laurel County Sheriff’s Office Captain . Richard Dalrymple. He was a combat engineer in the National Guard from March 2013 to January 2019. He was a private at the time of his departure and had no deployments.

Authorities then revised their initial report of nine automobiles hit by gunfire to twelve, citing the fact that several drivers were unaware their cars had been hit by bullets until they got home.

14 band students were on a Harlan Independent Schools bus when it became caught in the gridlock that followed the incident. It was getting dark at that moment, so the kids were able to communicate with family members while being unable to witness any police activity.

Superintendent C.D. Morton stated that there was a widespread feeling of worry and anxiety as well as a genuine desire to get the bus moving and south so that they might be reunited with their families.

According to a false web report, semitrucks surrounded the bus to keep the children safe, but Morton refuted it on Monday.

According to Acciardo, the public is submitting tips to the authorities, and they are investigating each one in case it contains information that could lead to the shooter’s whereabouts. To stop the gunman from leaving the area when the search is discontinued at night, specially trained officers have been stationed in key spots across the woods.

It is absolutely unfortunate that someone would commit violent crimes at random,” he remarked. Things that are happening across our nation are reported in the media, but when they become personal, they serve as a small wake-up call.