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Crime

Anaconda Murder Suspect Charged with Four Counts of Homicide

Michael Paul Brown was arrested after a weeklong search for allegedly opening fire in The Owl Bar

By Shaylee Ragar, Montana Public Radio
The Owl Bar in Anaconda Montana on August 4, 2025. The bar was the scene of an August 1 shooting resulting in four deaths and an ongoing manhunt for the suspect. Shaylee Ragar | MTPR

The suspect accused of killing four people in Anaconda last month has been charged with four felony counts of deliberate homicide.

The Anaconda-Deer Lodge county attorney’s office charged Michael Paul Brown on Friday. Each charge carries a minimum 10 year prison sentence.

Brown was arrested after a weeklong search, for allegedly opening fire in The Owl Bar in Anaconda on August 1. The shooting left three patrons and a bartender dead.

All documents in Brown’s cases were previously sealed at the request of County Attorney Morgan Smith. She wrote that releasing the documents amid robust media coverage could unduly influence a jury trial. However, Smith petitioned late last week to unseal some of the filings.

Brown is set to appear in court Wednesday morning for a preliminary hearing.

This story originally appeared on Montana Public Radio, which can be found online at mtpr.org. Montana Public Radio is a public service of the University of Montana. State government coverage is funded in part through a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

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