FAIRMONT — A Truman man is facing a felony charge in Martin County. Troy Jay Larsen, 52, has been charged with one count of possession of ammo/any firearm after previously being convicted for a crime of violence. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

According to the complaint:

On February 15, 2021, a Martin County Sheriff’s Deputy received a phone call from a woman who indicated that Larsen had previously had a shotgun in the house where they both had been living, but the shotgun was now missing. She explained that Larsen is a convicted felon and cannot have a gun. She believed that Larsen had taken it with him when he moved out of the house.

The deputy reviewed Larsen’s criminal history and determined that Larsen and the woman both have felony convictions. Larsen was convicted in 2011 of Felony Second Degree Criminal Sexual conduct, a crime of violence under Minnesota law. The woman also had previous convictions for crimes of violence.

On February 18, 2021, the deputy received a phone call from a Department of Corrections agent who indicated that Larsen had told him that he had a shotgun at his house and it is now missing. Larsen told him that he was worried about where the gun would be. Larsen explained that he has the weapon to keep small game animals away from his livestock.

The agent indicated that both Larsen and the woman had been living at the location where the gun was supposed to be. The deputy contacted the woman, who advised that she had a friend helping her move horses when she called Larsen to explain where the shotgun was located. Larsen told her the location of the weapon and she retrieved it and gave it to her friend so that it would not be in the house.

The deputy contacted the woman’s friend, who admitted to having the shotgun at his house. The deputy went to his location and picked up a 12-gauge shotgun. The friend also gave the deputy three shotgun shells that he said he removed from the firearm.

On February 20, 2021, the deputy spoke with Larsen who admitted to having the weapon at the house. Larsen claimed the woman wanted him to get a shotgun to kill rodents on the farm. Larsen told her that he could not get one.

Larsen claimed that the woman’s father brought them the gun, and admitted to using the shotgun to kill rodents and two foxes. He admitted that he knew he was not to be in possession of a firearm.

The deputy later spoke with the woman, who admitted that her father had brought the shotgun to them to kill rodents. The deputy asked if her DNA would be found on the shotgun. She said that when she found the gun, she grabbed the case it was in and the gun fell out.

She admitted to touching the gun at the time. She admitted to knowing that she was prohibited from having a gun.