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BUTTE, Mont. – Officials have unveiled the booking photo of the individual suspected in a quadruple homicide at a small-town bar in rural Montana.
Michael Paul Brown, 45, is currently being held in the Butte-Silver Bow County Jail, in Butte, located just 20 miles from where he allegedly shot and killed four people at The Owl Bar in the town of Anaconda on Aug. 1.
Jail records do not specify the charges he is facing.
Michael Paul Brown’s mugshot overlayed on a photo of The Owl Bar in Anaconda, Montana (Butte-Silver Bow Jail; Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
The victims, Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59, Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 64, David Allen Leach, 70, and Tony Wayne Palm, 70, were all residents of Anaconda. Kelley was a bartender, while the other three were patrons of the bar.
After an intense week during which the suspect was on the run, a collaborative effort involving local police, state authorities, and federal law enforcement successfully captured Brown on Friday.
The Owl Bar where Michael Paul Brown allegedly shot and killed four people on Aug. 1, 2025 (left) and Brown’s boarded up home (right). Photographed Aug. 8, 2025. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital) (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
During a press briefing outside the Deer Lodge County Courthouse in Anaconda, Governor Greg Gianforte announced the arrest.
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“Our law enforcement officers wasted no time,” he stated. “They immediately sprang into action and initiated the search, vowing to not rest until the suspect was found. Today, I am relieved to announce that Michael Brown has been captured, arrested, and is now in custody.”
Authorities revealed that Brown was apprehended near a barn on private property just west of Anaconda, a mere five-and-a-half miles from the scene of the crime.
Main St. in Anaconda, Montana, leads to the Deer Lodge County Courthouse with mountains in the background. Photographed on Aug. 8, 2025 (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital) (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
Although Brown’s motive remains unclear, residents have indicated that he struggled with mental health issues.
In an interview with a local news outlet, his niece Clare Boyle mentioned that Brown suffered from PTSD due to his military service, as well as schizophrenia. She claimed that the VA had denied him assistance, a statement that has been refuted by those who knew Brown.
Mountains in Anaconda, Montana on August 8, 2025. The Anaconda Smelter Stack (right) is the oldest surviving masonry structure in the world and a National Historic Landmark. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital) (Fox News Digital)
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“Mikee’s decline started really heavily when my grandma passed,” she told KTVQ. “The trauma from losing his last parent broke Mikee. The VA said he no longer qualified for assistance with obtaining prescriptions and help.”
Boyle did not respond to multiple requests for comments.
