Standoff leads to 3rd felony case against Kalispell man

A Kalispell man with two felony cases pending in Flathead County District Court saw fresh charges brought against him last week after allegedly shooting indiscriminately outside his Cedar Mill Road home.

More than a dozen members of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office and two Kalispell Police officers took position near 56-year-old Matthew Allen Monen’s home about 10:17 p.m., Nov. 21 after receiving multiple reports of gunfire in the area, court documents said. 

Authorities allegedly spoke with Monen by phone earlier in the day after receiving the initial report of gunfire emanating from his property. Monen admitted to firing a gun, but agreed to stop, court documents said. At the time, authorities reviewed a layout of his property and noted homes in all directions around it. 

When another call about gunfire on Monen’s land came in, authorities headed to the property, using dirt mounds to the north of his home as cover, court documents said. There, a deputy watched through binoculars as Monen allegedly stepped onto his balcony and fired off four rounds with a rifle in an unknown direction.

During repeated attempts to reach Monen by phone, authorities observed him pacing in and out of his home, court documents alleged. When Monen picked up, about one hour and 45 minutes after authorities responded to the area, he initially refused to cooperate, according to court documents. 

He ultimately surrendered to authorities about 12:30 a.m., Nov. 22, court documents said. Prosecutors subsequently brought him up on one count of felony criminal endangerment in Flathead County District Court. He is expected to appear before Judge Heidi Ulbricht on Nov. 30 for his arraignment. 

Monen previously picked up a felony intimidation charge in October after allegedly threatening to beat up his ex-wife, and later accusing her of kidnapping the couple’s son and hiring assassins to kill him. He also left voicemails for his ex-wife saying she needed to let him hug his son or “he would kill,” court documents said. 

Monen pleaded not guilty at his Nov. 2 arraignment before Judge Robert Allison. 

Kalispell Police officers arrested Monen later that month after responding to reports of a reckless driver in the municipality’s downtown area, court documents said. Officers allegedly found a white Ford Escape sport utility vehicle registered to Monen left parked in an active construction zone near the intersection of Second Street West and Main Street on Oct. 19. 

They located Monen walking nearby. When they directed him to undergo field sobriety testing, he allegedly fled, though officers later caught up with him and took him to the Kalispell Police Department.

A check of Monen’s prior criminal history revealed prior drunk driving convictions in 2014, 2021 and 2022, court documents said. Arraigned before Ulbricht on Nov. 2, Monen pleaded not guilty to felony driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, fourth or subsequent offense.

News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 758-4430 or dperkins@dailyinterlake.com.