By Steve Gorman
(Reuters) -The U.S. Marshals Service on Sunday posted a $7,500 reward for any information leading to the capture of the man accused of shooting four people dead in a Montana bar before he vanished, sparking a search for the suspect in the nearby mountains.
The reward was announced as state Attorney General Austin Knudsen visited the small southwestern Montana town of Anaconda to be briefed by investigators and provide a public update on the third day of the manhunt.
According to authorities, the suspect, Michael Brown, 45, walked into the Owl Bar late on Friday morning and opened fire with a rifle, killing the bartender and three patrons, then fled the scene.
A stolen pickup truck used as a getaway vehicle was later recovered, but law enforcement’s last sighting of the suspect was during a brief pursuit about two hours after the shooting, Knudsen told reporters.
Investigators have yet to determine a motive, but Brown lived near the bar, was a regular there himself and presumably knew all four of his victims, Knudsen said.
They were identified publicly on Sunday as bartender Nancy Lauretta Kelley, 64, and customers Daniel Edwin Baillie, 59, David Allen Leach, 70, and Tony Wayne Palm, 74.
The manhunt, which has involved as many as 250 local, state and federal law enforcement personnel and various aircraft, remained focused on a mountainous area west of Anaconda, a town of fewer than 10,000 residents about 75 miles (120 km) southeast of Missoula.
“We want to find this guy,” Knudsen said. “This is a dangerous individual who has committed an absolutely heinous crime against this community and his victims.”
Authorities have released a photo showing the suspect dressed only in black underpants and barefoot as he descends a flight of concrete steps with his hands braced against a wall. His face is smudged, and his chest and neck appear to be scraped.
Knudsen said the photo was taken after Brown had fled to another location near the shooting where “he got rid of some personal belongings and he got rid of his clothes.”
The vehicle he is suspected of stealing was loaded with camping gear, and “we have very good reason to believe that he is clothed, he does have shoes, and he’s probably able to get around,” Knudsen said.
The attorney general said Brown also was presumed to still be carrying the murder weapon.
Asked whether he believed authorities expected to find him dead or alive, Knudsen said, “He could have committed suicide and be dead, yes, but we are acting under the assumption that he is alive, well armed and extremely dangerous.”
He said the reward of $7,500 offered by the U.S. Marshals Service for information leading to his arrest was an initial sum, indicating it might be increased.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Chris Reese)
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