A former Powell County Sheriff’s Office captain and high school wrestling coach has been charged with sexual intercourse without consent involving a student, Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced.
John Austin Micu, 42, was charged Wednesday in Powell County District Court following a more than year-long investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct involving a student and member of the Powell County High School wrestling team. At the time of the alleged offense, Micu served as a captain with the Powell County Sheriff’s Office and as the head wrestling coach at Powell County High School.
The case began in March 2025, when the Helena Police Department received a report alleging sexual misconduct involving Micu. According to court documents, Micu communicated with the student through Snapchat. When confronted by another Powell County officer, Micu denied having a sexual relationship with the student but acknowledged the student would stay overnight in his basement when she was having conflicts with her mother, and that he would stay in the basement with her because of what he described as marital issues.
In April 2025, agents with the Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation interviewed Micu, and he admitted to engaging in sexual intercourse with the student. Charging documents allege the conduct occurred between April 1, 2024, and April 15, 2025, during a period when Micu was an employee or contracted to work for the school district and when the student was unable to consent.
Micu resigned from his position with the Deer Lodge School District on March 7, 2025, and resigned from the Powell County Sheriff’s Office last month, just before the Attorney General’s Office took over prosecution of the case. The Powell County Commissioners passed a resolution requesting the AG’s office assist with prosecution due to a conflict of interest in the county attorney’s office. Micu has been a nine-year veteran of the department.
Micu has been summoned to appear in Powell County District Court for an initial appearance. Assistant Attorney General Meghann Paddock is prosecuting the case. The investigation was completed by the Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation, following initial investigative work by the Deer Lodge Police Department.