By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – The local media reported on Saturday cited law enforcement officials that 4 people were killed in a bar shooting in Anaconda, US state of Montana.
Media reported that the shooting occurred at The Owl Bar in Anaconda, a city located in southwestern Montana on Friday, quoted NBC Montana.
The suspect was identified as Michael Paul Brown, according to a Facebook post by the Anaconda-Deer Lodge County Law Enforcement Center.
“Be advised suspect in shooting is believed to be armed and dangerous,” said the post.
The officials posted a photo of the suspect on Facebook and advised the public to stay out of the Stump town area and surrounding areas.
Montana Highway Patrol said in a Facebook post that there is a “heavy law enforcement presence west of Anaconda near Stump town Road and Anderson Ranch Loop Road.”
“Authorities are searching for a suspect believed to be armed. Please avoid the area,” the agency added.
The business owners locked their doors and sheltered inside with customers as reports of the shooting spread through town.
Caterpillars to Butterflies Childcare, a nursery a few blocks from the shooting scene, owner Sage Huot said she’d kept the children inside all day after someone called to let her know about the violence, media reports said.
The owner of the Firefly Cafe in Anaconda said she locked up her business after getting alerted to the shooting by a friend.
“We are Montana, so guns are not new to us,” café owner Barbie Nelson said.
He added “For our town to be locked down, everybody’s pretty rattled.”
