Montana camper found dead was killed — but not by a bear, authorities say

More than two weeks after a Montana camper was found murdered in his tent, authorities are asking locals to be on the lookout for a large ax and several guns they believe were taken from the crime scene.

It’s the latest development in a case that has captivated the public since mid-October, when a friend reported 35-year-old Dustin Kjersem dead of a possible bear attack. But investigators quickly ruled the case a homicide — and still haven’t taken anyone into custody.

“People have asked me if there’s a threat to this community, and the answer is we don’t know,” Gallatin County Sheriff Dan Springer said at a press conference earlier this month. “We don’t have enough information to know at this time, but we do know that someone was out there who killed someone in a very heinous way.”

In a social media update posted Thursday, the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office thanked the community for providing information and said “multiple leads are being investigated.”

Here’s what we know so far.

Kjersem was found dead of “multiple chop wounds” during a camping trip

Kjersem, of Belgrade, Mont., was last seen on the afternoon of Thursday, Oct. 10, when he drove to a makeshift campground in Moose Creek to spend the weekend with a friend.

The area — just north of Big Sky — is “fairly remote,” but typically busy with hunters and campers, according to authorities. They say Kjersem set up a wall tent roughly 8 by 10 feet and stocked it with essentials.

“He was well prepared for a weekend of camping, and had plans to meet with a friend on Friday afternoon,” Investigative Captain Nathan Kamerman said at the press conference. “But he never made that meeting.”

The friend, who has not been identified, went looking for Kjersem and found his body around 10 a.m. local time on Saturday.

The sheriff’s office said in its initial statement that “the caller indicated that the death may have been caused by a bear attack.”

But wildlife officials — including a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks agent with “expertise in bear attacks” — didn’t find any signs of bear activity at the scene, which prompted investigators to treat the case as a homicide.

“Evidence gathered through an autopsy further indicated that this was a homicide,” it said.

Kamerman said the autopsy showed that Kjersem sustained “multiple chop wounds” that led to his death.

Springer said at the press conference that the murder weapon was still undetermined, but authorities “know it was something hard enough to cause significant damage to the skull as well as some flesh areas of the body.”

Authorities are asking the public for information, including about possible weapons

Last week, the sheriff’s office asked the public to be on the lookout for a number of items that are “believed to have been removed from the scene of the crime”: an Estwing camp ax (likely with a 26” handle), a Remington shotgun, a Ruger Blackhawk revolver and an orange Yeti brand cooler.

They said anyone with information about the items — or about the case at all — should contact their office by phone or email.

Investigators and Kjersem’s family are imploring people to come forward with any information that might be of help, no matter how small it might seem.

The sheriff said that the remote location of the crime scene — with its limited cellphone service — and the lag between when the murder occurred and was reported make it especially hard to piece together what happened.

“Think of this as a large jigsaw puzzle,” Springer said. “It might be that little piece that puts this together for us.”

They have shared a photo of Kjersem’s black 2013 Ford F-150 and are asking anyone who saw him or the vehicle to come forward.

They are also urging anyone who was in the area of Moose Creek or Gallatin Canyon between Thursday afternoon and Saturday morning to reach out with information, especially if they saw anything out of the ordinary or happened to have game or car cameras in that vicinity.

They can do that by calling 406-582-2121 during business hours or 406-582-2100 (and selecting option one) to reach a dispatcher for after-hours or urgent tips.

“There is someone in our valley that is capable of truly heinous things,” Kjersem’s sister, Jillian Price, said at the press conference. “Please, if you were in Moose Creek at any time from Thursday to Saturday, please call and talk even if you think you didn’t see anything.”

Kjersem was a beloved father and outdoorsman

Price described her brother as a “hardworking, skilled tradesman” who was born in Bozeman and worked all around the area.

“He could have framed your house, he could have poured your foundation, could have installed your countertops,” she said. “He was a loving, helpful and adoring father who in no way deserved this.”

Kjersem doted on his daughter and stepson, according to his obituary, and could sit with them for hours doing crafts together.

“His home resembled an elementary classroom because he hung everything they made,” it reads. “Dustin would send pictures of their work, as if his kids had just painted the Mona Lisa.”

He loved fishing from a young age and developed a passion for snowboarding as a teenager. According to his obituary, it was rare for people to refer to him by his name — he went by a series of nicknames over the years, including Duct Tape, Cupcake and Kage.

“If you are a fish or an antelope, the world just became a safer place,” it says. “No longer, in tandem, will Kage and his best friend Matt hunt you down. But for the rest of us, there will be a hole, a space in our world that will never be filled.”

Kjersem is survived by his parents, two children, three sisters, grandfather and “many” aunts and uncles.