I Bar Ranch owner and employee arrested on drug charges

Last week, on Sept. 1, Gunnison locals Bryan Wickenhauser, 50, and Dominic Danni, 46, were arrested on felony drug warrants. 

The arrest was conducted by the Gunnison Police Department and members of the 7th Judicial District Task Force, which includes agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Danni and Wickenhauser were both charged with Illegal Distribution of Schedule II Narcotics, a class 3 drug felony, and Conspiracy to Distribute Illegal Narcotics, a class 1 drug felony. 

According to an arrest affidavit obtained by the Times, in early 2021 the police department started receiving anonymous reports that an individual in the valley, somehow associated with the I Bar Ranch and going by the name of “Nick,” was selling cocaine. Over a year later, in late summer of 2022, another individual was arrested on an outstanding felony warrant, and via information this person gave the police, officers were able to verify that “Nick” was an alias for Danni. 

Police were told that Danni was a serious dealer who had been selling in the Gunnison Valley for a decade, possibly using the I Bar Ranch as a platform to sell drugs at concerts and other events. In October of 2022, a confidential source started informing police about drug-related crimes in the city and provided information that further suggested Danni was dealing cocaine. Danni was arrested in November of 2022 for domestic violence-related charges and was found to be carrying what was later confirmed to be cocaine. 

In July of this year, another anonymous source told police that Danni was dealing cocaine.. Later that month, Danni was arrested during a traffic stop for possession of two plastic packages of cocaine, totaling a little over 5 grams. At the time, Danni told officers he was preparing for a big music event at I Bar Ranch. In the middle of July, Judge Steven Patrick signed a sealed warrant authorizing police to collect geographical and phone use data from Danni’s phone, allowing them to see who he was calling and where he was. 

On Aug. 6, members of the police department and the 7th Judicial District Task Force, which includes agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, set up a surveillance operation involving undercover officers at the I Bar during a live music performance. During that event, officers witnessed at least one known I Bar employee participate in a drug deal, and Wickenhouser sold two undercover agents almost 5 grams of what was later confirmed to be cocaine, according to the affidavit. 

Later in August, the undercover officers returned for a two-day surveillance operation. At that time, Wickenhauser is alleged to have again sold undercovers about 3.5 grams of cocaine. Another undercover officer bought cocaine from Danni. During that interaction, Danni “bragged to the [undercover] that he had moved large volumes of cocaine.” That interaction was video recorded.  

Danni is currently being held in the Gunnison County Detention center on a $60,000 bond. Wickenhauser was also being held on a $60,000 bond but posted bail on Sept. 1. The investigation is ongoing, and several search warrants were executed within the City of Gunnison related to the case.   

A district attorney has not yet been assigned to the case and formal charges in the court case are not due for another 10 days. Wickenhauser will appear for arraignment on Sept. 26 at 2:30 p.m. Danni will appear on Sept. 19 at 10 a.m. for a plea hearing and appearance on bond.