Four dead in shooting at Montana bar

[EvilEyeFleegle]

Do we know it was a rifle?

Sort of....some reports:

Anaconda Shooting: 4 victims identified, suspect still at large

Four people died after being shot at the Owl Bar in Anaconda on Friday, August 1, 2025.

www.kbzk.com

(UPDATE, 12:58 p.m.) From Granite County Sheriff's Office: "White F-150 that was in pursuit out of Anaconda is stopped in Deer Lodge County. Was not the suspect. Stand by for more info as it comes. As of right now no threat to citizens of Granite County at this time. Remain vigilant, will update when more info is received

A person at a nearby bar told MTN News he saw the shooter walking around with a rifle.

Anaconda, Montana shooting updates: 4 confirmed dead, suspect identified

The town of Anaconda, Montana, is on lockdown after a reported shooting at the Owl Bar.

www.newsweek.com

The suspect, 45-year-old Michael Paul Brown, lived next door to the bar, public records show. Authorities said a SWAT team cleared his home, and he was last spotted in the Stump Town area, just west of Anaconda. The massive manhunt continued into Friday evening in the wooded, mountainous area.

The bar's owner, David Gwerder, told the Associated Press that the bartender and three patrons were killed. Gwerder was not there at the time. He believed the four victims were the only ones present during the shooting and was not aware of any prior conflicts between them and Brown.

"He knew everybody that was in that bar. I guarantee you that," Gwerder said. "He didn't have any running dispute with any of them. I just think he snapped."

 

[ThisIsMe]

You were saying it because that’s the MAGA mindset

Noooo...lol, thats the liberal mindset, to automatically blame maga and white supremacy everytime a story like this breaks, even before any details come out.

 

[JGalt]

Noooo...lol, thats the liberal mindset, to automatically blame maga and white supremacy everytime a story like this breaks, even before any details come out.

That's because they fear us. The left still hasn't figured out why Donald Trump won in 2024, and they fear what they can't understand, or what they can't control.

 

[Edgetho]

Who the hell is drinking in a bar at 10:30 in the morning?

Third Shift?

 

[Meathead]

Who the hell is drinking in a bar at 10:30 in the morning?

You should live in the Czech Republic. I used to see old ladies and workmen drinking beer outside of pubs on my way to work at 8 in the morning. Now, alas, I live in a neighbourhood with not pubs.

 

[HikerGuy83]

Have not caught him yet.

 

[theHawk]

Who the hell is drinking in a bar at 10:30 in the morning?

 

[theHawk]

Well...I guess that's why we call it the Wild West eh?
This sort of thing has been going on forever...firearms and alcohol--a potent mixture.

Four dead in shooting at Anaconda bar, search for suspected shooter continues

Four people are dead after a shooter opened fire at Anaconda’s Owl Bar at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 1, 2025, according to a press release from the Montana Department of Justice.

montanafreepress.org

Four people are dead after a shooter opened fire at Anaconda’s Owl Bar at approximately 10:30 a.m. Friday, according to a press release from the Montana Department of Justice.

“Authorities are searching for a suspect who is believed to be armed west of Anaconda near Stumptown Road and Anderson Ranch Loop Road,” DOJ Press Secretary Chase Sheuer wrote in the release sent at 2:20 p.m. Friday.

The suspect was identified as 45-year-old Michael Paul Brown, who lived next door to the bar, according to public records reported on by the Associated Press. Authorities said his home was cleared by a SWAT team and that he was last seen in the Stump Town area, which is just west of Anaconda.

In a 1:20 p.m. Friday post on X, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said that its Denver office is “responding to a shooting where multiple parties have been shot at a business in Anaconda.”

Apparently the man has been diagnosed with schizophrenia.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/02/us/montana-search-suspect-anaconda-bar-shooting.html

Bring back mental asylums.

 

[JWBooth]

Who the hell is drinking in a bar at 10:30 in the morning?

I dunno, maybe the night shift from the mine.

 

[candycorn]

~~~~~~
Anaconda has a total population of nearly 10,000 people.
Made up mostly of ranchers and farmers.
It's guaranteed that if the State troops on't get him, one of the ranchers or farmers will.

He’ll probably off himself

 

[EvilEyeFleegle]

Have not caught him yet.

Nope...of interest is that his brother is doing life for a murder in the same community.

Manhunt intensifies for Montana bar shooting suspect, 38 agencies part of the 'unrelenting' search

A manhunt is intensifying for the former U.S. Army soldier who has been on the run for days after allegedly gunning down four people at a Montana bar.

abcnews.go.com

 

[EvilEyeFleegle]

Found this in the East Idaho News..pretty good story about the bar and the victims of the shooting:

The Owl Bar was the place where everybody knew your name. Then, a familiar face walked in – and opened fire - East Idaho News

ANACONDA, Montana (CNN) — Under the buzz of neon lights and cluttered walls and ceilings of The Owl Bar, bartender Cassandra Dutra spends many of her nights catering to the familiar faces crowding her counter, often losing track of the number of rounds the regulars have bought each other as the...

www.eastidahonews.com

Short snippet--

On the morning of the shooting, Dutra said, she stood on the sidewalk for four hours watching The Owl Bar be surrounded by SWAT teams and swarms of law enforcement. When she finally tried to leave her block, she said, she had to duck under crime scene tape. It’s a scene she could not have fathomed before.

“It’s just so much to wrap your head around in a community like Anaconda,” Dutra said.

But even as the search for the suspect wears on, residents are trying their best to support the owner of the bar, David Gwerder, and honor the memories of lost friends. Dutra is still coming to terms with losing Kelley, a nurse-turned-bartender who had recently retired from a long career caring for cancer patients.

“It just is an extremely unfair ending for somebody who spent their entire life dedicated to cancer patients and making a huge difference,” Dutra said.

Fitzpatrick said she hopes people will prioritize the victims and have deeper discussions about mental health after the suspect’s family members and several residents expressed Brown had long struggled with mental illness.

“I really hope that we can truly fight for mental health, really be considerate of the person sitting next to you,” Fitzpatrick said. She has been heartened to see local businesses going out of their way to feed and care for first responders – an action she said is characteristic of tight-knit Anaconda.

 

[EvilEyeFleegle]

Suspect finally caught..I'm surprised..I really thought he'd kill himself.

There's a picture in the link which says a lot, it's a pic of him leaving after killing everyone--barefoot and looking as crazy as you can imagine. It's like he got out of bed, grabbed his rifle, killed 4 people and wandered off...just like that.

Montana bar shooting suspect taken into custody after weeklong manhunt

The former U.S. Army soldier accused of gunning down four people at a Montana bar has been captured following a weeklong manhunt.

abcnews.go.com

The former U.S. Army soldier accused of gunning down four people at a Montana bar has been captured following a weeklong manhunt, the Granite County Sheriff's Office said Friday.


Michael Paul Brown, 45, is suspected of opening fire on Aug. 1 at The Owl Bar in Anaconda, a city of about 9,000 people in southwestern Montana, authorities said.

"Thanks to all the brave law enforcement officials who helped apprehend the Anaconda shooting suspect," Montana Sen. Steve Daines said on social media. "For the past week, Anaconda and the surrounding community showed the country the resilience and grit that makes MT special. Our thoughts continue to be with the victims and their families."