11/27/16 — Man charged with possession of rifle

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Man charged with possession of rifle

By Ethan Smith
Published in News on November 27, 2016 12:09 AM

Police arrested a man Tuesday accused of running from officers with a stolen AR-15 rifle in tow on Oct. 15 when they found him at 309 W. Holly St.

According to a press release, Dwayne Lee Hardy, 32, of 409 Brownrigg St., was at 709-B N. George St. with Willard Sprangle on Tuesday when officers went to serve warrants on him for possession of a stolen firearm and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon as a result of the October incident.

Hardy allegedly fled from officers in October when he was hanging out at a vacant residence at 309 W. Holly St., carrying a stolen AR-15 rifle, which was later found by police.

The owner of the property gave police consent to search the residence because illegal items were in plain view after the door was opened, the release said.

Sprangle, 53, who lives at 709-B N. George St., was then charged with possession of a schedule I controlled substance, possession of a schedule II controlled substance, maintaining a dwelling for controlled substances and two counts of failure to appear.

Officers served Hardy's warrants for firearm charges at the same time.

Rueben Armstrong, who was also at the residence, was cited for simple possession of marijuana.

Hardy is being held under a $100,000 secured bond, while Sprangle is being held on a $16,305 secured bond.

Both men were scheduled to have first appearances in Wayne County court last week.