Manhunt underway in Montana after four people killed in Anaconda

A shooting inside a bar in Anaconda killed four people Friday morning, and Montana law enforcement officials said they continued to search for the man they identified as the shooter.

Witnesses told investigators that the gunman started shooting inside the Owl Bar, locate at 819 E. Third St. in Anaconda, at about 10:30 a.m. on Friday. The Anaconda-Deer Lodge Law Enforcement’s website identified the shooter as Michael Paul Brown, 45. As of late Friday, Brown had not been found.

Brown “is believed to be armed and dangerous,” the agency wrote in a social media post. “Michael Paul Brown was last seen in the Stumptown area. Public is advised to stay out of the Stumptown area and surrounding areas.”

Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies fanned out across the region, telling businesses to lock down and residents to stay inside as a helicopter circled overhead. Residents said there were a lot of places to hide in the trees and mountains outside of the city of about 10,000 people.

“I’m constantly hearing sirens go off every 10 or 15 minutes,” Brandon Barager, 32, who lives in the area, told the New York Times. “They’re looking, just trying to find a needle in a haystack.”

The sheriff’s office in neighboring Granite County said that a police tactical team had searched Brown’s house but had not found him.

Brown may be driving a white Ford F-150 pickup. After the shooting, however, law enforcement engaged in a pursuit of a white F-150 Ford pickup that eventually ended in Deer Lodge County.

The driver of the truck who fled “was not the suspect,” according to a Granite County Sheriff’s Office news release. “As of right now (there is) no threat to citizens of Granite County at this time. Remain vigilant. (We) will update when more info is received. Deputies are on standby at Flint Creek Pass and outside of town. Other agencies are in the Drummond area.”

Officers from Missoula, about an hour and a half drive north of Anaconda, and other state and local agents were pouring into Deer Lodge County to help with the search, according to the New York Times.

The Denver office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said it was sending agents to assist the police in Anaconda.

Gov. Greg Gianforte of Montana posted on social media that he was monitoring the situation closely and praying for the victims.

This story is developing and will be updated.