When the news broke about Warren Barnes found Colorado, it wasn't just another headline about a transient man. It was a gut punch to a whole town. Grand Junction lost a legend. You might not have known his name, but if you lived there, you knew his face. He was the guy sitting in a chair, buried in a paperback, feeding the birds. People called him "The Reading Man." He was a fixture. A quiet soul.
Honestly, the details are heavy. It's one of those stories that makes you lose a bit of sleep. In February 2021, Warren went missing. It wasn't like him. He had his routine, his spots, his birds. When he didn't show up for his odd jobs, people noticed immediately. This wasn't a man who would just vanish.
The truth came out in the most horrifying way possible. A mother was cleaning her teenage son’s room and found things no parent should ever see. She found Warren. Or at least, parts of him. Her son, Brian Cohee Jr., had decided he wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone. He chose Warren because he thought nobody would care. He thought Warren was "disposable."
He couldn't have been more wrong.
The Night Everything Changed in Grand Junction
On February 27, 2021, Warren was sleeping under a highway overpass. It was cold. He was 69 years old. Cohee, who was only 19 at the time, had been driving around looking for a victim. He’d even put together a "murder kit." He saw Warren’s canvas tarp and decided this was it.
The attack was brutal. Warren’s last words, according to Cohee’s own confession, were "Why are you attacking me?" It’s a question that still haunts the community. There was no motive. No fight. Just a kid with a 12-inch kitchen knife and a morbid curiosity. Cohee later told police he was "growling" during the act. He even took pictures of the scene before deleting them, though investigators eventually recovered them from his phone.
🔗 Read more: The Faces Leopard Eating Meme: Why People Still Love Watching Regret in Real Time
Cohee didn't just kill him. He dismembered him. He took Warren’s head and hands home in plastic bags and hid them in his closet. The rest of the body was dumped in the Colorado River near a boat ramp.
Why Warren Barnes Wasn't Just "A Homeless Man"
The killer’s biggest mistake was assuming Warren was invisible.
Warren Barnes was a staple of the downtown scene. He wasn't some drifter from out of town; he was a lifelong resident of the Grand Valley. He’d been a cowboy. He had siblings. He had a daughter. He was a man who chose to live outside, but he was far from alone.
He had this specific way of talking. If you told him to have a good day, he’d always respond with, "And you also." He shared his daily Subway sandwiches with the birds. He helped shop owners move boxes. He worked through a temporary agency. He was a man of integrity.
When he went missing, the search wasn't just led by the police. It was led by the people who saw him every day. Monique Lanotti, who owned a bridal shop where Warren liked to sit, was one of the first to realize something was wrong. She had even provided him with a bamboo chair so he wouldn't have to sit on the cold concrete.
💡 You might also like: Whos Winning The Election Rn Polls: The January 2026 Reality Check
The Trial and the Insanity Plea
The legal battle was long and painful for the family. Cohee’s defense tried to argue he was "not guilty by reason of insanity." They pointed to his diagnoses of autism, ADHD, and major depressive disorder. They claimed he had a "psychotic episode" triggered by seeing Warren’s shelter.
But the prosecution didn't buy it. Neither did the jury.
The evidence showed a high level of planning. Cohee had been scouting locations for months. He had a kit. He wore three layers of gloves to avoid leaving prints. He even wrote a "1st" in his phone notes to mark the occasion. That doesn't look like a sudden break from reality; it looks like a calculated execution.
In February 2023, the jury delivered their verdict. Guilty on all counts, including first-degree murder and tampering with a body. Brian Cohee Jr. was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
A Memorial That Truly Matters
If you go to the 500 block of Main Street in Grand Junction today, you’ll see something special. There's a metal sculpture in the breezeway where Warren used to sit. It’s a replica of his chair, complete with a stack of books and a tree for shade.
📖 Related: Who Has Trump Pardoned So Far: What Really Happened with the 47th President's List
The artist, Tim Navin, spent nearly 300 hours on it. He’d been homeless himself once, so this project was personal. On one of the metal books, the pages look like they’re blowing in the wind. Inscribed on the back are those three words: "And you also."
It’s a permanent reminder that no human being is a "throwaway." Warren was a person. He was loved. And he is missed.
Practical Takeaways from the Warren Barnes Case
This story is a tragedy, but it also highlights some critical issues about how we view and protect the vulnerable members of our society.
- Visibility is Protection: One reason Warren’s killer was caught so quickly was that people knew Warren. They knew his routine. If you have unhoused neighbors, simply knowing their names and faces can be a form of safety.
- Mental Health Warning Signs: The "Dahmer" nickname Cohee had in school was a red flag that went largely unaddressed. Serious fascinations with morbidity in young people require professional intervention.
- The Power of Community: The memorial for Warren wasn't funded by the city; it was funded by friends and local business owners. It shows what happens when a community refuses to let someone be forgotten.
If you want to honor Warren’s memory, the best thing you can do is treat the next "reading man" you see with a bit of dignity. Maybe even share a sandwich.
Next Steps for You:
If you're in the Grand Junction area, visit the memorial in the breezeway off Main Street. It’s a powerful place for reflection. If you're elsewhere, consider donating to local organizations that support the unhoused, like the Grand Junction Mutual Aid or local shelters, to ensure those living outside have the resources and visibility they deserve.