A FAMOUS guitarist has been killed after he was gunned down in a police stand-off following a drunken neighbor row about tree trimmings.
The artist grabbed three guns and opened fire on California cops in a driveway on Monday after things escalated between him and his neighbor.
Police later identified their suspect as Brian Montana, an original guitarist for Possessed.
Possessed is a death metal band based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Montana died at age 60 after a 25-minute stand-off between him and the South San Francisco Police Department on Monday evening.
The former guitarist was armed with a handgun, shotgun and rifle, according to police.
He used the firearms to shoot at the cops from a driveway, seeking cover behind two parked cars and landscaping.
The cops used their own cars to take cover and then returned fire.
Montana lost his life during a confrontation, as explained by Stephen Wagstaffe, the district attorney for San Mateo County, to The U.S. Sun. The conflict began due to a dispute with his neighbor over branches that had fallen into his yard.
Wagstaffe confirmed that Montana had been drinking.
“When you have anger, tequila and guns, that’s a recipe for disaster,” he said.
He explained how Montana was angry at his neighbor, whose wife was good friends with Montana’s wife, and decided to grab his guns.
While the neighbor was inside his own house grabbing his guns, Montana grazed him with a bullet that he shot through the door.
The cops were called and Montana immediately started shooting at them once they arrived.
It was a “small little thing that turned into a bonfire,” Wagstaffe said.
BAND PAYS TRIBUTE
Possessed paid tribute to Montana following his death.
“Very tragic news,” the band wrote on their Instagram story.
They added: “Our sympathies to the Montana family and friends.”
Possessed, known as the godfathers of death metal, was created in 1983.
Montana departed from the band soon after in 1985, with Larry LaLonde taking his place. LaLonde is now best recognized for his role as the guitarist for the rock band Primus.
The artist said he left Possessed because of founding guitarist Mike Torrao.
Brian Montana’s police stand-off
Former Possessed guitarist Brian Montana, 60, died on Monday during a stand-off with California cops. Here are the details:
- Montana was armed with a handgun, shotgun and rifle.
- He shot at officers from the South San Francisco Police Department.
- He used two parked cars and landscaping for cover.
- The cops used their own cars to take cover and then returned fire.
- Montana died in the stand-off that reportedly was connected to a dispute over tree trimmings falling over a neighbor’s yard.
- One resident was injured during the incident.
“I left the band because Torrao had a terrible attitude problem and wouldn’t stop ragging at me,” Montana previously told Voices From the Darkside.
“He had a problem with my image,” he said.
The artist added: “He didn’t think I was evil enough or something.”
The original Possessed band only lasted until 1987, but they have reformed multiple times.
Most recently, the band reformed in 2017, and in 2019, they released Revelations of Oblivion – their first album in decades.
Montana is the second Possessed member to be shot.
In 1989, vocalist Jeff Becerra was shot multiple during a robbery that left him paralyzed, per Loudwire.
