Montana Shooting Suspect Still At Large

The suspect of a mass shooting in Montana on Aug. 1 was still at large on the morning of Aug. 3 local time, according to officials who warned that he may be armed after making an escape in a stolen vehicle.

Former U.S. Army Sergeant and former Montana National Guard Member Michael Paul Brown, 45, is accused by authorities of killing four people at The Owl Bar in Anaconda, Montana, a town of 9,000 people, on Aug. 1.

According to Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, Brown allegedly committed the shooting with a rifle that law enforcement believes is his personal weapon.

The four people killed were a female bartender and three male patrons, and authorities are waiting until after families are notified to release their names.

Knudsen said on Aug. 3 that Brown lives next door to the bar and was a regular and could therefore return to the area.

“This is an unstable individual who walked in and murdered four people in cold blood for no reason whatsoever,” Knudsen said. “So there absolutely is concern for the public.”

Authorities released a photo of Brown on Aug. 2. He was barefoot, shirtless, wearing black shorts and walking down what appeared to be a flight of outdoor steps. Authorities said it depicted him fleeing the shooting on Aug. 1.

There is a $7,500 reward for any information that leads to Brown’s capture.

“While law enforcement has not received reports of Brown harming any other individuals, he is believed to be armed, and he is extremely dangerous,” Lee Johnson, administrator of the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, said on Aug. 2.

According to Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Ruth Castro, Brown rose to the rank of Sergeant, serving as an armor crewman in the Army from 2001 to 2005, and deploying to Iraq from early 2004 to March 2005. He then served in the Montana National Guard from 2006 to March 2009.

Brown’s niece, Clare Boyle, said on Aug. 1 that her uncle struggled with mental illness for years, and she and other family members 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.”

Knudsen said that the investigators are considering all possible options for Brown’s location, including searching through the woods where Brown hunted and camped as a child. Brown is believed to have stolen a vehicle with camping gear and clothes after ditching the white vehicle in which he is said to have initially fled the scene, according to officials.

But the attorney general said that some law enforcement officials would have to return to their local jurisdictions due to it being peak tourist season in western Montana.

Meanwhile, numerous public events were reportedly canceled.

“This is still Montana. Montanans know how to take care of themselves. But please, if you have any sightings, call 911,” Knudsen said.

Law enforcement last saw Brown in the afternoon of Aug. 1, but Knudsen said there was “some confusion,” due to multiple white vehicles being involved.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.