CRIME / COURTS

Police: Man tied up woman, killed her father

Justin Sayers
Louisville Courier Journal

Police in Jeffersontown arrested a man who is accused of killing his girlfriend's father after attempting to kidnap the woman, court records show.

Christopher Cobert

Christian Cobert, 28, of Jeffersontown, allegedly tied up his girlfriend and attempted to remove her from her residence with a gun to her head, according to an arrest citation released Tuesday. The incident occurred in the 9000 block of Green Garden Court.

Police said Cobert later entered the bedroom of 61-year-old Larry P. Wittmer and demanded his wallet, police said. He forced Wittmer, the woman's father, on his stomach and made the woman hogtie him.

Wittmer was able to untie himself while Cobert briefly left the room, police said. When he returned, the two exchanged gunfire inside the residence.

The exchange continued outside the residence, and Wittmer was shot in the head, according to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office. He was transported to University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead in the emergency room.

Cobert fled on foot and got rid of boxes of ammunition before he was apprehended by police, the citation said. When he was read his rights, he admitted to the offenses, police said.

He was charged with murder, kidnapping, assault, wanton endangerment, tampering with physical evidence and robbery, court records show.

Cobert pleaded not guilty with no disposition to the charges Tuesday morning, according to court records. A judge set a cash bond at $500,000.

Cobert is scheduled to appear in court next on June 3.

Justin Sayers can be reached at 502-582-4252 or jsayers@gannett.com.