A Kansas City, Missouri man has been sentenced to four years in federal prison for his role in a firearms trafficking conspiracy. Michael Dewayne Hardy, 23, received a 48-month sentence without parole from U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips and will serve three years of supervised release after his imprisonment. Hardy was also ordered to pay a $6,500 criminal forfeiture money judgment.
Hardy admitted on April 7, 2025, that he knowingly participated in an agreement to sell firearms to individuals prohibited from possessing them under federal law. He also admitted to illegally trafficking a machinegun. According to the plea agreement, Hardy and others trafficked at least 22 firearms either to known felons or as unregistered machineguns in violation of federal law. On at least three occasions, Hardy worked with co-conspirators to sell seven firearms to a prohibited person; one of these had been converted into an unregistered machinegun.
Several co-defendants were also prosecuted and sentenced:
– Dejohuan Mietz Huntley, 27, pleaded guilty on February 21, 2024, to conspiracy charges and other firearm offenses. He was sentenced on June 26, 2024, by Judge Phillips to 70 months in federal prison without parole and three years of supervised release.
– Antonio Manning Sr., 23, pleaded guilty on April 14, 2025. He admitted involvement in the illegal sale of at least nine firearms—including one unregistered machinegun—and was sentenced on August 7, 2025, to 48 months in prison without parole and three years of supervised release.
– Sheron Manning, 22, pleaded guilty on January 22, 2025. He was sentenced on May 21, 2025, to serve 57 months in prison without parole and three years of supervised release.
– Fedo Manning, 24, pleaded guilty on April 17, 2025. Sentenced on August 21, 2025, he received a term of 66 months without parole and three years’ supervised release.
One firearm originally purchased by Fedo Manning was later found at the scene of the shooting during the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory celebration on February 14, 2024. The recovered weapon was an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol loaded with live rounds; it may have fired several shots before being discarded.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Trey Alford prosecuted the case following an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America—a national initiative led by the Department of Justice focused on combating illegal immigration networks and transnational criminal organizations while addressing violent crime.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri manages federal prosecutions across western Missouri’s sixty-six counties with offices located in Kansas City, Jefferson City and Springfield official website. The office works closely with various law enforcement partners at all levels official website and supports community outreach programs targeting issues such as violent crime and drug trafficking official website. Its jurisdiction extends from the Iowa border southward to Arkansas and from Kansas eastward halfway across Missouri official website.
