Search in Montana mountains for ex-soldier suspected of killing 4 in bar shooting
By MATTHEW BROWN COLLEEN SLEVIN and LISA BAUMANN Associated Press Searchers were scouring a mountainous area of western Montana on Saturday for a military veteran who they say opened fire at a bar killing four people Related Articles Killings on Arkansas trail Schoolteacher arrested while getting a haircut Map Murder suspect Travis Decker now sought in Idaho Protester killed in shooting at No Kings rally in Utah police say Map Where murder suspect Travis Decker is thought to have been seen Infamous California Tesla road rage driver assaulted by inmates in Hawaii jail Michael Paul Brown fled the Owl Bar in the town of Anaconda in a white pickup truck but ditched it at specific point reported Lee Johnson administrator of the Montana Division of Criminal Probe which is overseeing the affair He urged residents late Friday to stay at home and remain on high alert On Saturday personnel issued a photo of the suspect barefoot and shirtless on what appeared to be a flight of outdoor concrete approaches after fleeing the scene of the shooting While law enforcement has not received reports of Brown harming any other individuals he is presumed to be armed and he is extremely dangerous Johnson announced Brown lived next door to the Owl Bar reported owner David Gwerder who wasn t there during the shooting Friday morning Gwerder stated the Associated Press that the bartender and three patrons were killed and announced he didn t think anyone else was inside He also announced he wasn t aware of any conflicts between Brown and any of the casualties He knew everybody that was in that bar I guarantee you that Gwerder reported He didn t have any running dispute with any of them I just think he snapped Anaconda-Deer Lodge Police Chief Bill Sather mentioned Saturday that businesses in the area could open but he urged caution Personnel declared they would release the names of the casualties once all of their families have been notified This is a small tight-knit locality that has been harmed by the heinous actions of one individual who does not represent what this group or Montanans stand for Johnson stated Anaconda about miles northwest of Butte is hemmed in by mountains The town of about people was founded by copper barons who profited off nearby mines in the late s A smelter stack that is no longer operational looms over the valley Brown served in the U S Army as an armor crewman from to and deployed to Iraq from early until March noted Lt Col Ruth Castro an Army spokesperson Brown was in the Montana National Guard from to March Castro disclosed He left military system in the rank of sergeant Brown s niece Clare Boyle described The Associated Press on Friday that her uncle has struggled with mental illness for years and that she and her other family members repeatedly sought help This isn t just a drunk high man going wild she wrote in a Facebook message It s a sick man who doesn t know who he is sometimes and frequently doesn t know where or when he is either With no sign of Brown in the white pickup or his home leadership converged on the Stumptown Road area west of Anaconda by ground and air Friday locking it down so no one was allowed in or out Executives had lifted the lockdown by Saturday A helicopter hovered over a nearby mountainside as officers moved among the trees noted Randy Clark a retired police officer who lives there The search continued Saturday morning explained Chase Scheuer a spokesperson for Montana s Division of Criminal Review As reports of the shooting spread through town earlier Friday business owners locked their doors and sheltered inside with customers The owner of the Firefly Caf in Anaconda noted she locked up her business after a friend alerted her to the shooting
