Helena man sentenced to 15 years in prison for illegal firearm possession

GREAT FALLS – A Helena man who possessed a firearm illegally was sentenced today to 180 months in prison to be followed by 5 years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

Chaz Dean Cox, 29, pleaded guilty in September 2025 to one count of prohibited person in possession of a firearm.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.

The government alleged in court documents that in April 2019, Chaz Dean Cox was convicted of multiple felony counts of burglary and drug possession in Lewis and Clark County. Because of his convictions, the defendant was prohibited from owning, possessing, transferring or controlling any firearm or ammunition.

On March 31, 2024, law enforcement officers were on patrol in Helena and saw Cox and his co-defendant accessing the interior of a vehicle. Cox was taken into custody based on active arrest warrants. Officers seized the involved vehicle based on plain view observations related to suspected drug possession.

On April 1, 2024, law enforcement obtained and executed a search warrant on the vehicle. Items seized from the vehicle included a loaded 7.62x25mm caliber pistol.

In a law enforcement interview, Cox denied possessing the firearm. His co-defendant was interviewed and admitted concocting a lie with Cox about who possessed the gun to prevent Cox from getting into trouble. The co-defendant was not responsible for getting the gun, and it belonged to Cox. The first time the co-defendant saw the gun was the night before Cox was arrested and Cox was worried about getting caught with the gun.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case. The ATF, Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office, Helena Police Department, and State of Montana Probation and Parole conducted the investigation.

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