‘Alaskan Bush People’ star Matt Brown feared dead amid police search for body in river
‘Alaskan Bush People’ star Matt Brown feared dead amid police search for body in river
The family of “Alaskan Bush People” star Matt Brown is expressing fear for his safety after deeply troubling reports surfaced Thursday involving a river incident in Washington state.
Matt’s brother, Bear Brown, 38, shared an emotional video on TikTok saying he had been informed Matt, 42, may have killed himself, though he stressed he could not independently confirm that information.
“I’m being told that late last night that Matt took his own life,” Bear said in the video. “I can’t confirm that that’s true, but witnesses say that he was seen in a river, at a river, or close to a river.”
@bearthekingofextreme Really bad news about Matt #bearthekingofextreme #alaskanbushpeople #thelifeofbear #fyp ♬ original sound – Bear Brown
According to Bear, “So far they haven’t been able to find any body. I can’t confirm it 100 percent, but it looks like it is.”
The Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office told TMZ that a 911 caller reported seeing a man sitting in shallow water along a river before he was swept away by the current.
The caller reportedly looked away briefly, then turned back to see the man floating face down in the water.
Police, firefighters, and EMS personnel responded and searched the area, but were unable to locate a body.
As of Friday morning, the search was expected to resume when weather conditions improve.
No law enforcement agency has publicly confirmed Matt’s whereabouts or condition.
In his TikTok video, Bear spoke openly about Matt’s long struggle with addiction.
“He’s been struggling for a long time,” Bear said, recalling one of his last conversations with his brother, a chance encounter at a Walmart before Bear left for Florida.
“He called me after that, and he said that he had fallen off the wagon,” Bear revealed. “And I was like, ‘Well, get back on it, man. Everybody falls off. Just get back on it. Go to rehab if you’ve got to. You’ve got this.'”
Bear said that was the last time the two spoke.
Despite knowing about Matt’s struggles, Bear said the news still came as a shock.
“I would have never thought that Matt would take his own life, honestly,” he admitted. “I know he’s had problems and he struggles and stuff like that, but I never thought that.”
Bear also pushed back on public perception that the Brown family had cut Matt off. “Everyone thinks that the family has shunned him. That’s not actually the case.”
He closed his video with an emotional plea to fans. “Please be respectful to the family, to my mom especially. Please don’t blame her. Mom cares very much for Matt and always has.”
Matt appeared on Discovery Channel’s “Alaskan Bush People” during its early seasons.
The show, which followed the Brown family living in isolation in a remote part of Alaska, premiered in 2014 and last aired in 2022 after 14 seasons.
Matt previously entered treatment for alcohol addiction in 2019.
