Alaskan Bush People star Matt Brown has died at the age of 43 after his body was recovered from a river in Washington state, according to his brother Solomon Isaiah “Bear” Brown.

Bear confirmed the heartbreaking news Saturday evening in a TikTok update, days after publicly sharing fears that his older brother may have taken his own life.

“They found a body in the river a few hours ago and it was positively identified as being Matt,” Bear said in the emotional video.

Matt Brown in a red tank top with a beard and long blond hair.

Bear revealed that their younger brother Noah Brown was the first member of the family to see Matt after his body was recovered and also helped authorities during the difficult process.

“Noah helped them pull the body out of the water and Noah identified [Matt],” Bear explained.

While an official cause of death has not yet been confirmed, Bear said the family believes Matt’s death may have been self-inflicted, pending the coroner’s examination.

“I would’ve never thought that Matt would hurt himself,” Bear said. “It does look as though it was self-inflicted.”

 

He added that Matt had struggled for years with alcohol addiction, drug abuse and other personal issues that he largely kept private.

Authorities first began searching for Matt after the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call Wednesday reporting a man sitting in a shallow section of the Okanogan River.

According to investigators, the caller later heard a sound, saw the man face down in the water and watched as he was swept away by the river’s current.

Matt Brown looking at the camera in a video still.

Police later recovered a firearm near the area where the man had last been seen.

Emergency crews launched an extensive search operation but were initially unable to locate him before dangerous river conditions forced authorities to temporarily suspend the search.

Bear also urged fans to avoid spreading negativity online while the family grieves the devastating loss.

The tragic confirmation came only days after Bear posted another emotional TikTok video sharing “some really bad news,” explaining that he had heard Matt may have died by suicide but could not yet verify the reports at the time.

Matt Brown, from Alaskan Bush People, inside a cabin.

Bear previously said witnesses claimed Matt had been seen near the river before later being spotted floating downstream.

“All the witnesses are saying that it was Matt,” Bear said earlier this week. “Someone definitely did, and a lot of people are thinking that it’s him. It looks like it is. It’s looking very likely that it is the case.”

He also denied rumors that the family had abandoned Matt in recent years, insisting instead that his brother had distanced himself from relatives on his own.

“Matt didn’t want anything to do with the family,” Bear claimed.

Matt Brown and Gabe Brown posing in a forest.

“Alaskan Bush People” alum Matt Brown poses with brother Gabe

According to Bear, Matt had also recently been struggling emotionally following a difficult breakup.

“I guess he had been drinking too much. I don’t know all the details to it,” he said.

Concern about Matt’s wellbeing intensified last week after he appeared in a troubling YouTube livestream where he was reportedly seen nude, speaking incoherently and holding what appeared to be a firearm.

Matt Brown appeared in 79 episodes of Alaskan Bush People between 2014 and 2019 alongside his parents, Billy and Ami Brown, and his siblings.

The Discovery Channel reality series followed the Brown family’s off-grid lifestyle as they lived in remote wilderness areas in Alaska and later Washington state.

Source: pagesix