Kentucky police find ‘armed and dangerous’ shooting suspect after a foot chase
The Stanton Police Department detained a suspect accused of shooting someone in Powell County Wednesday morning after a foot pursuit, according to police.
Police received a tip that 21-year-old Aaron Couch, the alleged shooter, was in the Brush Creek/Little Brush Creek Road area at 10:14 a.m. Wednesday. Police said responding officers found Couch in a field off Brush Creek Road, and a foot pursuit followed.
Couch ran up an embankment, down a cliff side and on the Bert T. Combs Mountain Parkway before being taken into custody, according to police. Couch crossed both lanes of traffic on the Mountain Parkway and in the eastbound lane for a mile, police said.
“The thorough but speedy investigation that led to a suspect’s identification and capture is truly remarkable,” Police Chief Arthur Lacy wrote in a Facebook post. “Officers were able to receive the call for service, identify a suspect and take him into custody in less than 8 hours.
“I am truly proud of the department and of the other agencies (Clay City Police Department, Kentucky State Police, Powell County Sheriff’s Office, and Powell County EMS, Powell County Dispatch Center) that had no small part in assisting in the outcome of a safe apprehension.”
Couch has been charged with assault and fleeing police. He’s been lodged at the Powell County Detention Center on a $500,000 bond, according to court records.
The shooting happened around 3 a.m. in the Pine Creek subdivision, police said. One person was taken to the hospital and their condition is critical.
Before Couch was detained, he had last been seen near the intersection of Hatton Creek Road and Kentucky Highway 11/15, which is close to Powell County High School and Powell County Middle School.
Out of an abundance of caution, Powell County Schools announced it would be using an NTI day Wednesday.
Couch has ties to Clay City, Winchester and Lexington, according to police. He was considered “armed and dangerous,” police said. Police announced just after 11 a.m. Wednesday that Couch had been detained.
This story was originally published May 4, 2022 at 7:02 AM.
