Bear Brown slammed people leaving disrespectful comments about brother Matt Bear amid the family’s concerns for his well-being.
“First off, I’m not just making a video on rumors. It’s a very, very, very, very small chance it’s not him. It’s like 99 percent him,” Bear, 38, said of the family’s fear for Matt, 43, in a Friday, May 29, Facebook video after being told that his brother may have died. “I document my life and I document it as I hear stuff. So when stuff that bothers me or something happens to me, I make a video about it.”
Bear added that he was taken back by the “negative” and “nasty comments” left on his and Matt’s social media accounts amid the ongoing situation with police searching for an unidentified man who was swept away by a local river. There has been no official confirmation that the unidentified man is Matt.
The Okanogan County Sheriff Office in Washington announced in a press release that someone called 911 on Wednesday, May 27, with the report.
“It’s just insane to think people would leave nasty comments on stuff like that. I wonder where the kindness has gone in the world and why people knock people down instead of trying to help them,” he continued. “People’s words hurt people. They do. It hurts people. It can hurt people just with the little comments you leave. Luckily not me, it doesn’t bother me because I know you’re wrong. But there’s other people it does hurt and it does affect them.”
Bear advised his followers to be “more careful” with what they post online before giving an update on Matt.
“More on the subject of Matt though, it’s a little bit more than rumors,” he said. “I’ve talked to quite a bit of people and stuff I’ve heard from locals and eyewitnesses and the coroner and things like that. At this time the body has not been recovered and all eyewitnesses have said that the description fits Matt’s description to a T. So there’s a really good chance it is him.”
Bear shared he was “still praying” for “some miracle” that his brother is OK. The Alaskan Bush People star explained that the search for Matt has been briefly called off due to a “really bad storm” that is going on in Washington, where Matt resides.
In addition to addressing the toxic social media comments, Bear slammed the speculation that the family shunned Matt.
“The family didn’t turn their back on Martt. We spent a lot of trouble, stuff, hassle and money trying to help Matt,” he said. “Everybody cared about him. Everyone was on his side.”
Bear claimed that Matt was the one who “distanced himself from the family” with some members not associating with him at all. Bear, for his part, shared that he kept in touch with his brother.
“I did speak with him. But y’all being hateful and stuff like that in the comments is plain and simply not cool,” he said. “Especially in light of everything going on. It’s not cool.”
TMZ reported that the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office received an anonymous call on Wednesday, regarding a man sitting in the shallow waters of the Okanogan River in Washington. The caller claimed to see the man lying face down in the river and being swept away by the current. Emergency responders searched the area but have yet to find a body.
A source close to the Brown family told Us Weekly, “The family is not sure what to believe right now. They are not sure where Matt is but they are hoping that he is OK and that the information is wrong. They are all in contact and speaking to police and waiting to hear. They have had their issues [with Matt] and Gabe has been the person most in contact with him.”
Bear and Matt both appeared on the Discovery show Alaskan Bush People. The series aired from 2014 to 2022. Matt quietly exited the reality show in 2019.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
