A manhunt is still underway in search of Michael Paul Brown, 45, the suspect in the fatal shootings in Anaconda, Montana, on Friday.
At around 10:30 a.m. on Friday, Aug 1, Brown allegedly walked into The Owl Bar, a small bar in Anaconda, and shot and killed four people. The victims include a bartender and three patrons.
The police followed Brown in his car, but then retreated, believing him to still be armed. When they found the car, Brown was not inside. It is believed he fled into the nearby mountains, according to local authorities. The car chase is the last contact police had with Brown, roughly around noon.
Brown was previously known by law enforcement as he has a criminal record. He is also known to have access to firearms. Brown served in the US army, and it is thought by friends and family that he suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD.
Brown was a regular at The Owl Bar and he lived next door to the establishment. It is thought by authorities that this may have been a targeted attack, but a motive is still unknown.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said, in a press conference on Friday, “I think it’s likely that he knew the bartender and these patrons, which makes this even more heinous.”
The victims included Nancy Laurettea Kelley, 64, a recently retired nurse who had been working as a bartender there, and David Allen Leach, 70, a deaf man who lived in a public housing complex for elderly people with disabilities. Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59, and Tony Wayne Palm, 74, were also among the victims.
As of Monday, the search for Brown is still ongoing. The US Marshals have announced a $10,000 reward for information on where the suspect may be. A hotline was also set up at 1-877-926-8332, for anyone with additional information. The public is warned that Brown is potentially armed and dangerous.
This tragedy hits the Anaconda community hard. Kristian Kelly, daughter of victim Nancy Lauretta Kelley, said she knew Brown and has heard some of his stories from the military.
She shared with NBC News that, “We didn’t even lock our cars outside, you know, or the house, and it’s, I mean, I wouldn’t say it’s dangerous here at all,” she said. “But when people don’t receive services, you know, in rural areas, sometimes this is what happens.”
