Santa Rosa traffic stop yields assault rifles, arrest

A traffic stop Tuesday in west Santa Rosa for a broken brake light put a Santa Rosa man in jail after Sonoma County sheriff’s deputies found two assault rifles in his car, according to a sheriff’s official.

Deputies arrested Cory Upchurch, 27, on Tuesday after stopping him on Guerneville Road near Cleveland Lane. The man’s 1995 Saturn had an inoperative brake light, prompting the stop, said sheriff’s Sgt. Spencer Crum in a news release Wednesday.

Upchurch was driving with a suspended license and was on probation for a prior conviction, Crum said.

A search of the car turned up two rifles on the back seat in a black garbage bag. The rifles had pistol grips and flash suppressors, which make them illegal to possess, Crum said.

Deputies also found a small amount of methamphetamine and syringes in a backpack belonging to the female passenger. Deputies arrested her on a misdemeanor citation, Crum said.

Upchurch was arrested on suspicion of possessing and transporting assault rifles and violating his probation, as well as driving on a suspended license. He was booked into the Sonoma County Jail. Bail was set at $60,000.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 707-521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter@rossmannreport.