Clarion man pleads guilty to federal firearms charge

SIOUX CITY — A Clarion man has pleaded guilty to a federal illegal possession of a firearm charge.

45-year-old Michael Hanus pleaded guilty earlier this week in US District Court to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. The US Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa’s office says he previously was convicted of interference with official acts involving a dangerous weapon, which prohibits him from possessing a firearm.

Prosecutors say that evidence showed that back in October, Wright County law enforcement were investigating a case of elder abuse and received information that Hanus possessed an AR-15-style rifle at his father’s residence in Humboldt. A law enforcement agent later seized an HDR-15 rifle from Hanus and later determined that the firearm had been stolen.

Hanus when sentenced at a later date faces a possible maximum sentence of 15 years in prison as well as a $250,000 fine.