Who are the McCoys, the Kentucky couple who found the I-75 shooters body?
What prompted a Kentucky couple to go deep into the forest for six days and, on Wednesday, discover the body of a man who shot five people on Interstate 75 this month?
The couple called themselves "bounty hunters on the hunt." A day before they found the body of 32-year-old Joseph Couch, who opened fire Sept. 7 on a busy stretch of interstate near Exit 49, about nine miles north of London, the couple told Kentucky state troopers their goal: get Couch off the streets and collect the reward money.
"Trying to find $35,000," Fred McCoy told the troopers . He and Sheila, his wife of 38 years, had spent day five of their manhunt looking for Couch after noticing buzzard activity near where they said Couch fired at drivers on the interstate.
The next day, the couple was filming live on their YouTube page when they followed a trail of circling vultures and a foul smell to Couch's body .
Until their six-day search for Couch, the couple's YouTube channel was mainly devoted to the famous feuding families the Hatfields and McCoys. They also posted occasionally about law enforcement, bookwriting and concealed carry classes.
Here's what we know about them so far — including an accusation of corruption in an Eastern Kentucky police department.
Kentucky couple related to Hatfields, McCoys
The couple operated the Hatfield & McCoy Museum in Liberty, which according to the website is closed until further notice. The museum, which opened in the 1970s in Ransom, houses what they say is the largest collection of artifacts dedicated to the Appalachian feud. The families battled each other from 1863-1891 in West Virginia and Kentucky.
Fred says he is related both the Hatfields and McCoys.
Fred McCoy accused sheriff of corruption
Fred retired in 2018 after more then 40 years in law enforcement. A former Marine, his last post was as fire and police chief in Hustonville, a rural city in Lincoln County. Before that, he served as a detective and deputy sheriff in Lincoln and Pike counties.
In 1989, Fred and another detective from the Pike County Sheriff's Department accused the sheriff of corruption, ranging from covering up a death investigation to dismissing traffic violations.
The two officers were dismissed three days after airing their claims at a news conference. They filed suit in August 1990 saying they were fired for publicizing corruption in the department. Almost five years later, the pair settled a $3 million wrongful dismissal lawsuit against Sheriff Charles "Fuzzy" Keesee.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but McCoy's lawyer at the time said "was some money involved."
Couple are carry concealed instructors
According to the museum's website , Fred and Shelia McCoy have two children. Shelia is a kindergarten teaching assistant with nearly 30 years experience and is a carry concealed instructor. The couple offers carrying concealed deadly weapons training and certification.
Shelia's saying is: "It's better to have a gun and not need it, as to need a gun and not have it."
A historian for the museum, Shelia has written several books including a Hatfield–McCoy cookbook. Together, the couple has also authored books.
Multiple attempts to contact the couple since Wednesday evening have been unsuccessful.
KY couple who livestreamed discovery of I-75 shooter's body also showed area he shot from
