At 4:30 pm on Monday, December 16, Clear Creek County Deputies noticed a suspicious vehicle parked in a dirt lot in Silver Plume. The unoccupied vehicle had fictious license plates on it and the VIN had been intentionally obstructed. Deputies were eventually able to obtain the VIN and determine that registered owner Brian Cope (DOB 10/13/84) had an extraditable warrant for Failure to Comply out of Summit County. Deputies were also notified of an alert indicating Cope has violent tendencies and should be considered armed and dangerous. 

As deputies were running the warrant, they noticed a man walking towards them down a mountain trail. Deputies watched as the man paused to place an item behind a rock. The man was contacted and identified as Cope. He was taken into custody without incident on the Summit County warrant. 

Behind the rock, deputies found a loaded 9mm handgun. Deputies also conducted an inventory search of the vehicle that was to be towed due to fictious plates. Inside the vehicle they found:

•    A loaded, short-barreled rifle with no serial number

•    Six high-capacity magazines

•    Numerous boxes of ammunition

•    Kevlar tactical vest with metal plates

•    Tactical helmet

•    Police scanner

•    Federal law enforcement replica badge

•    Burglary tools

•    Drug paraphernalia 

In addition to the warrant, Cope was arrested on the following charges, with final charges to be determined by the 5th Judicial District Attorney’s Office:

•    Possession of a Weapon by a Previous Offender

•    Impersonating a Peace Officer

•    Violation of a Protection Order (two counts)

•    Unlawful Conduct Involving an Unserialized Firearm

•    Prohibited Large Capacity Magazine

•    Possession of Burglary Tools

•    Drug Paraphernalia (three counts)

See the attached photo of the items found during a search of Cope’s person and vehicle.