Authorities warn Montana bar shooting suspect could return to area as manhunt continues

Amid an ongoing manhunt, Montana authorities warned Sunday that Michael Paul Brown, the suspect accused of killing four people in a Montana bar on Friday morning, could return to the town of Anaconda where the shooting occurred.

During a news briefing on Sunday afternoon, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said the suspect was “an unstable individual who walked in and murdered four people in cold blood, for no reason whatsoever. So there absolutely is concern for the public.”

Knudsen said Brown is believed to be “an armed and extremely dangerous individual” and advised members of the public to remain vigilant and call 911 immediately if they see him.

A $7,500 reward is being offered to anyone with information about Brown, Knudsen added.

Knudsen also identified the four victims of the Friday-morning shooting as 64-year-old bartender Nancy Lauretta Kelley and three patrons, 59-year-old Daniel Edwin Baillie, 70-year-old David Allen Leach and 74-year-old Tony Wayne Palm. All of the victims were from Anaconda.

Kelley’s daughter, Nancy Kelley, said her mother was a recently retired oncology nurse. She worked as a nurse for around 30 years and got a part-time job as a bartender at the Owl Bar “to fill some of her time.”

“It kept her a little bit social, just seeing people,” Nancy Kelley said. Her mother had worked at the bar for around a year and a half, she said.

A U.S. Forest Service employee, she first heard of the shooting at her mother’s workplace through a text from a friend.

“My first step was to call her, and I didn’t get an answer,” she said. That is when she drove to Anaconda and found out her mother was a victim in the shooting.

Nancy said she could never have imagined that an incident like this would happen in Anaconda.

“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.”

Knudsen said a motive for the shooting was still under investigation but noted that Brown was a regular at the bar, as he lived next door.

“I think it’s likely that he knew the bartender and these patrons, which makes this even more heinous,” Knudsen said.

Nancy Kelley said she knew Brown as someone in the community who would tell in-depth, seemingly made up stories about his time in the military.

“Maybe they were pretty incredible, so I don’t know, but I think a lot of them were embellished,” she said. “And maybe he believed them. I’m not sure, but he definitely was somebody that needed care.”

Knudsen said the suspect used a rifle in the shooting and that Brown had access to firearms.

“We’re going to catch this guy. This is still absolutely priority No. 1,” Knudsen said.

A manhunt for Brown has been underway since Friday morning, when he allegedly walked into the Owl Bar at around 10:30 a.m. and opened fire, authorities said.

Authorities said Brown fled the scene wearing a tie-dye shirt, blue jeans and an orange bandana. However, a picture released Saturday by the Montana Department of Justice allegedly showed him fleeing the scene apparently stripped down to just his boxers.

Knudsen said that picture was taken “relatively soon” after the shooting, and that Brown got rid of some of his personal belongings and clothes. However, Brown was able to get his hands on a stolen vehicle that had some clothing in it and is now believed to be fully clothed, Knudsen said.

Knudsen did not rule out that Brown may have killed himself, but said that authorities “are acting under the assumption that he is alive, well, armed and extremely dangerous.”

Brown is known to local law enforcement and has a criminal record, Knudsen said.

Anyone who sees Brown is urged to call 1-877-wanted2, Knudsen said. As the search for Brown continues, Knudsen did not rule out that additional arrests could be made.

Officials have focused the multiagency search for Brown on the area off of Stumptown Road and expanded it to Barker Lake and the surrounding area.

Friends of Brown said he has a history of mental health issues. Shane Charles, who grew up with Brown in Anaconda and owns another bar, told NBC News that Brown struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder.

“Mike was a great guy when he was on his meds. He did have some mental health problems,” Charles said.

Brown’s niece, Clare Boyle, also said Brown struggled with mental health issues, according to The Associated Press.

Brown served in the Army from 2001 to 2005, was deployed in Iraq from 2004 to 2005, and was in the Montana National Guard from 2006 to 2009, U.S. Army spokesperson Steve Warren said.