On Friday, August 1, 2025, a man walked into the Owl Bar in Anaconda and began shooting, killing a bartender and three customers. Authorities quickly identified the suspect as 45-year-old Michael Brown. The victims have been identified by law enforcement, but their names have not yet been released.
Law enforcement officers from several agencies began searching for Brown, concentrating their efforts in the mountains near Stumptown Road just west of Anaconda. Later in the day, authorities found the truck that he fled in, but Brown was not in it.
As of Saturday afternoon, Brown remains at large, and the massive manhunt continues, with law enforcement agencies searching by ground and air for him.
The tight-knit community of Anaconda is now trying to band together and support each other.
MEAGAN THOMPSON REPORTS - WATCH:
Heather Collins is the owner of Peppermint Paddy’s, a restaurant that has been serving comfort food for three decades in the Smelter City.
Heather and her team are stepping up to support law enforcement; she said, "Our small town has a really good group of people that keep us safe and in times like this they are the ones that make us feel like everything is going to be okay and that we are in good hands.
Draper Maudlin says the whole town is in shock: "Oh, the whole town is heartbroken for sure. It’s just a travesty. Like, no one wins in this situation. It’s just something that the families are going to have to deal their lost loved ones… on both sides."
He hopes his friend will turn himself in: "Michael, we are all sorry for what has happened and we just know that there is a good side of him out there and we just hope that you would turn yourself in and just don’t hurt anybody else. Don’t kill anybody else. Just turn yourself in and we’re just sorry that this all happened."
SEARCH FOR SUSPECT CONTINUES - WATCH:
