A man wanted by police for allegedly possessing an AK-47 assault rifle while on drugs at a motorcycle rally this summer was arrested this morning in Gypsum.
Paul Ortega, 38, was taken into custody by a special-operations unit of the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office on two felony warrants.
Ortega was wanted by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for possessing an AK-47 at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota in August, according to the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office.
The other warrant is for failure to appear on charges of felony auto theft in New Mexico, Ortega’s home state, according to a sheriff’s office press release.
Ortega has ties to the Eagle County area and was taken into custody on a bicycle path.
Authorities considered him armed and dangerous at the the time of his arrest, the sheriff’s office said.
Ortega is being held at the Eagle County Detention Facility. Bail has not be set.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
