Grass Valley, CA – Brett Anthony Kelly, 43, of Grass Valley was arrested on April 29 on several charges, including possession of a loaded firearm in a public place; altering a firearm; possession of a controlled substance; and possession of a controlled substance while armed.
The arrest came about when two Nevada County Sheriff’s Office deputies were conducting extra patrol in the vicinity of South Ponderosa Way and Highway 20. The deputies noticed a guard fence for the emergency exit at Highway 20 to South Ponderosa Way had been taken down and a short distance away, a truck was observed idling on the South Ponderosa Way overpass with two occupants.
Finding this unusual, the deputies initiated a welfare check of the vehicle occupants. At such time, they met the driver, identified as Kelly, and his passenger. Through brief conversation and visual observations (suspected illegal drugs in plain view), the deputies had grounds to conduct a search of the vehicle. In doing so, the deputies recovered several items, including a loaded Ruger pistol with an altered serial number, ammunition/magazines, suspected methamphetamine, suspected heroin, a nine-round pistol magazine, a pistol holster, eight rounds of Federal .40 caliber ammunition, a scale, and two glass pipes.
Through the course of the investigation, Kelly was subsequently arrested for the aforementioned items and booked into Wayne Brown Correctional Facility without incident. His passenger was released at the scene with no charges filed.