Colorado trail predator sentenced to prison for flashing, groping hikers

An Evergreen man was sentenced Thursday to at least eight years in prison for a pattern of terrorizing women on Jefferson County trails, according to court records and the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office.

Glenn Thompson Braden IV, 21, was captured by Jefferson County deputies after a series of unwanted sexual encounters on county trails reported by female hikers who said a man exposed himself, masturbated in front of them and groped or attempted to grope.

In August 2023, when hikers reported another such incident in Genesee Park near Golden, officers spread through the park and arrested Braden after a foot chase.

Investigators said Braden told them he didn’t remember much of what happened because he was high on marijuana at the time, but said he felt “compelled” to commit the sex crimes, which occurred during about a dozen separate incidents between April and August 2023.

Braden was charged with four counts of unlawful sexual contact and one count of attempted sexual assault, all felonies, as well as nine counts of indecent exposure, a misdemeanor, and criminal mischief, a minor misdemeanor.

In August, he pleaded guilty to each count of attempted sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact and indecent exposure.