Traffic stop on I-80 leads to arrest, loaded firearms and narcotics seizure

A Summit County Sheriff's Department vehicle. Photo: TownLift // Rayne Moynahan

COALVILLE, Utah — A traffic stop on I-80 turned up a loaded AR-style rifle, a handgun, and drug paraphernalia last week, after Summit County deputies located a vehicle linked to a reported theft in Wyoming.

On June 26, an “attempt-to-locate” broadcast went out for a blue pickup truck towing a small trailer on westbound I-80. A Summit County deputy patrolling in Coalville then observed a vehicle matching the description provided by a witness in Wyoming, who had seen the driver stealing gasoline from a construction site.

The deputy stopped the truck near mile marker 162 and identified the driver as Kyle Fenner, a resident of Nevada. During the stop, deputies discovered two loaded firearms in the passenger area — a rifle and a handgun — along with four magazines for each weapon, 103 rounds of rifle ammunition, and 71 rounds for the handgun. Deputies also found drug paraphernalia containing a testable amount of narcotics.

Fenner was arrested without incident and booked into the Summit County Jail. He faces multiple charges for possession of the weapons and drug paraphernalia in addition to having an open container of alchohol in the vehicle and operating the car without registration or license. According to the report, the license plate on Fenner’s vehicle was registered to a trailer in California and did not match the truck he was driving.

While there’s no indication Fenner was under the influence at the time of arrest, deputies say the combination of narcotics and loaded weapons is deeply concerning.

While the motive for carrying the firearms remains unclear, Talbot emphasized the seriousness of the situation. “Anytime we are able to intercept somebody who is engaged in criminal conduct and in possession of illicit narcotics along with loaded firearms … it has the potential to be an incredibly dangerous situation.”

“Sometimes [these traffic stops] are nothing. I don’t think our deputy expected to find two loaded firearms in the vehicle with this individual who was obviously out committing crime,” he said. “In this case, we were luckily able to handle the situation with no real incident, but certainly one of those cases that could have gone the other direction.”

Further investigation on the case is underway.