The recent mass shooting that took place at a bar in Anaconda left four people dead and the entire state of Montana in shock. Stumptown Road in Anaconda is currently closed due to the ongoing manhunt for suspect Michael Brown. That manhunt is bringing in law enforcement from across the state, including the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office.
“A manhunt is not a frequent occurrence, fortunately. And being a very rural state, our manhunts typically end up like this, in the mountains,” says Nate Kamerman.
After hearing that the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office had been deployed to Anaconda to help with this manhunt, I called up Nate Kamerman, their investigations captain. He told me he could meet up for an interview, but he was already on the scene in Anaconda. So, I hopped in my car and made the two-hour trek into the Anaconda Pintler Wilderness.
WATCH: Law Enforcement Teams Up: Gallatin County Aids Anaconda in Manhunt for Shooter
“We received a mutual aid request from the Anaconda PD, so we’re out here giving them a hand,” shares Kamerman.
Kamerman couldn’t tell me specific information regarding the Gallatin County Sheriff’s assistance in this search, such as how long they’ve been deployed or how many units they sent out. But he could enlighten me on Montana Sheriffs' mutual aid.
“A federal grant helps fund this position for this type of scenario, where you have an event in a small community. You need more resources; you need help; you need assets. We rely on each other for that,” says Kamerman.
Created around four years ago, this program is currently run by a former captain from the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, who, Kamerman tells me, “actually has done a really good job of helping sheriffs around the state unite. As far as how to ask for information, how to ask for people, and know what is out there and available to them.”
Kamerman tells me that most of the time, mutual aid is used for fire incidents. So, on rare occurrences, such as this Anaconda shooting?
“That’s the beauty of the Montana Sheriffs' mutual aid program: knowing that when something big happens in our community, we have resources all over the state that are willing to come give us a hand when we need it. The same way we’re giving a hand on this one,” shared Kamerman.
If you have any information, you can call the tipline at 1-877-wanted2 or 1-877-926-8332.
