Ohio State Mansfield Abduction Victim And Suspect Dead After Police Chase

The suspect and victim in Monday's abduction from Ohio State University's Mansfield campus were pronounced dead following a multi-state police chase that ended with gunfire in Kentucky.

According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the suspect was Ty'Rell Pounds, 24, and the victim was Skylar Williams, 20.

Both Pound and Williams were killed by gunfire following a police chase on Interstate 71 in Kentucky. Pounds was fatally shot at the scene by a Kentucky State Police Trooper after he heard gunfire come from within the vehicle, according to a Facebook post by the Kentucky Highway Patrol.

Williams was struck by at least one of the bullets fired into the car. She was transported to the University of Louisville Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Pounds forced Williams into a car at gunpoint Monday around 11:45 a.m., according to the Ohio Highway Parol. Williams knew Pounds prior to the abduction; the current status of their relationship is unknown, but the two had a child. When the abduction happened, the child was safe with family.

Police later found the vehicle Pounds used to abduct Williams, but there was no sign of the two individuals. They say he later stole a dark gray Dodge Caravan at gunpoint.

According to the Kentucky State Police’s Facebook page, “Kentucky State Police Post 5 dispatch was contacted by Gallatin County dispatch in reference to a 911 call from a witness, stating they observed a distressed female at a gas station that was forced into a vehicle by a male. The caller stated it appeared that the female was asking for help and that the vehicle then sped off traveling towards Interstate 71 Southbound.”

Troopers spotted the vehicle in Henry County and tried to pull the vehicle over. According to the Kentucky Highway Patrol, Pounds did not stop and troopers unsuccessfully tried deploying stop sticks. 

The case continued into Oldham County, where the car exited the I-71 and then quickly tried to get back on the highway in the same area. According to the Kentucky Highway Patrol, troopers stopped the car. 

While attempting to catch Pounds, the trooper heard a gunshot coming from within the vehicle that “he perceived as an immediate deadly threat to himself and the female passenger.” The trooper then fired and fatally shot Pounds, who died at the scene.  Copyright 2019 WOSU 89.7 NPR News. To see more, visit WOSU 89.7 NPR News.