College student found dead with suspected kidnapper in Kentucky

CRESTWOOD, Kentucky -- A female student from an Ohio State University campus and a man suspected of abducting her both died after a police chase and shooting, Kentucky State Police said Tuesday.

The chase began Monday afternoon in northern Kentucky as police responded to a call about a person in distress, authorities said in a news release.

Officers intervened when the vehicle exited a highway and stopped on a ramp in Oldham County, northeast of Louisville. Police said a trooper heard gunfire from the vehicle and returned fire. The victim, Skylar Williams and the suspect, Ty'rell Pounds, were fatally shot.

Authorities said the trooper killed Pounds. It was not immediately clear if Williams was shot by Pounds or an officer.

Williams was a student at Ohio State's Mansfield campus. She and Pounds were both from Mansfield.

Authorities said Williams was in a parking lot at the school shortly before noon Monday when she was allegedly approached by Pounds armed with a gun and forced her into his vehicle and took off.

Kentucky police said a witness called 911, saying the person saw a distressed woman at a gas station being forced into a vehicle by a man. The caller said it appeared the woman was asking for help.

"Someone just kidnapped a girl on campus with a gun," a frantic woman told a 911 dispatcher.

ABC News reports that Pounds' roommate told police that Williams and Pounds were going through custody issues, authorities said.

Williams previously accused Pounds of sexual assault in September 2018 and in a police report from Jan. 3, 2019, after Pounds tried to pull Williams into his vehicle at a gas station, she told police she had filed an order of protection against him.

"Our Ohio State community suffered a tragic loss with the death of Mansfield student Skylar Williams," Ohio State University President Michael V. Drake said in a statement. "This senseless and shocking incident has left our campus shaken."

The university said counseling is available to members of the university community on the Mansfield campus.

The Kentucky State Police Critical Incident Response Team is investigating.

ABC News and The Associated Press contributed to this report.