Inmate named suspect in N.Ky. abduction of 74-year-old woman

COVINGTON, Ky. - A man already in jail for a bank robbery in Covington has been named as a suspect in the kidnapping of a 74-year-old woman last year.

Thirty-nine-year-old Joseph Weir was arrested Monday for the Dec. 5 robbery at the Huntington Bank at 540 Madison Avenue.

On Tuesday, police named Weir as a suspect in the May 31, 2011 abduction of Ann Ernst at the Crestview Hills Town Center. Police say Weir used a gun to kidnap Ernst, shoved her into her car before driving away. He searched through her purse as he drove her across the Ohio River into Hamilton County where he stopped at the rear of the Backscheider Transportation business in the 4100 block of East Miami River Road. He walked Ernst into the woods where she said he tied her to a tree and gagged her, according to investigators.

Police say Weir then took her car and drove off. Ernst was able to free herself and went in search of help. An off-duty Addyston police officer found her in the area of the Cleves Waterworks.

Captain Christopher Schutte with Lakeside Park/Crestview Hills Police Department said "through the course of evidence, we felt comfortable taking it to the Kenton County Commonwealth's Attorney for a direct indictment."

9 News spoke with the victim who said she was relieved and was crying and shaking when she heard the news.

Weir remains at the Kenton County Detention Center on a $500,000 bond. Additional information will be released as the investigation progresses.