ANACONDA, MT – The names of four people killed in a bar shooting in Anaconda were released by the Montana Department of Justice, as the suspect, Michael Brown, remains at large.
The state identified the four victims who were killed in Friday morning’s shootings as 59-year-old Daniel Edwin Baillie, 64-year-old Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 70-year-old David Allen Leach, and 74-year-old Tony Wayne Palm. All four were Anaconda residents.
At around 10:30 a.m., Aug. 1, Brown walked into the Owl Bar at 819 E. 3rd St., in Anaconda and began firing, a DOJ press release stated. In a Sunday press conference, Attorney General Austin Knudsen said the investigation is ongoing. He said the suspect had access to firearms, used a rifle in the shooting and lived next door to the bar.
Kelley was an employee at the bar, he said. The other three victims were patrons at the bar at the time of the shooting.
“I think that it’s likely that he knew the bartender and these patrons, which makes this even more heinous,” Kundsen said.
Knudsen added other details, saying the last law enforcement contact with Brown was around noon on Friday and that “some federal assets” were involved in that pursuit. Knudsen said the suspect “got rid of some personal belongings” and stole a vehicle, which he added had camping gear in it.
Investigators are acting under the assumption the suspect remains alive, Knudsen said. Local, state and federal resources have been used in the search and investigation.
“This, by all indications, 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. Again, I’m going to stress we believe this is an armed and extremely dangerous individual. I’m going to ask the public to be vigilant.”
According to the Montana Standard, the suspect was a U.S. military veteran, serving in the Army from 2001 to 2005. He was then in the National Guard from 2006 to 2009, reaching sergeant in the force, the newspaper reported.
State Senator Sara Novak, who represents Anaconda as part of her district, said it was a “very sad and uneasy time” in the community.
“There is no doubt this community will be hurting for a long time,” Novak said. “The kindness and willingness to help our friends and neighbors continues to be highlighted over and over these past few days. We will continue to take care of each other, but please continue to pray for safety and closure in this terrible situation.”
She thanked first responders and the state and federal agencies that came to lend a hand.
“We have work to do in Montana to ensure all of our communities (no matter how rural) are adequately served by law enforcement, fire/rescue/EMTs, and community resources, especially mental health supports,” Novak said.
In a release, the DOJ said to call 1-877-926-8332 to report a tip.
This story first appeared on Daily Montanan.
