TOOLE COUNTY – The Toole County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO) has released the names of the homicide victim and suspect in incidents that occurred in Kevin and Shelby on Monday.
Jeromy Wade Bryant, 43, of Kevin was identified as the victim of the homicide in Kevin. The homicide investigation began after Toole County deputies responded to Kevin for a report of a possible shooting and found Bryant dead at the scene.
Further investigation revealed that a suspect, Richard Moench, 50, of Shelby, had reportedly taken a female at gunpoint from the Kevin residence to his home in Shelby.
Moench then barricaded himself in his home, according to the Toole County Sheriff’s Office, and deputies blocked off the area, which was near Marias Medical Center.
Toole County Sheriff Donna Whitt contacted the Great Falls Police Department’s High-Risk Unit for assistance. A negotiator from Conrad Police Department was also called.
Officials negotiated with Moench, who eventually released the female hostage.
Negotiations continued, but Toole County authorities stated Moench opened fire on officers from inside his home and officers were “engaged in an exchange of gunfire.”
Moench was pronounced dead at the scene.
During the incidents, TCSO received mutual aid assistance from several law enforcement agencies including Toole County Search and Rescue, Toole County Ambulance, Great Falls Police Department, Conrad Police Department, FBI, Border Patrol, and Montana Highway Patrol among others.
The Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating.
