FRANKLIN, Ind. -- A suspect in the disappearance of a Greenwood teen pleaded not guilty Monday to an unrelated charge on which he is jailed.

Joseph Nowicki, 53, of Greenwood, appeared in Johnson County Circuit Court on a charge of gun possession by a violent felon. Police found guns at his home during a search earlier this month. Nowicki said the guns belong to his wife.

Nowicki cannot possess guns because he was convicted of two felonies, including second-degree murder in Starke County in 1973.

Greenwood police last week identified Nowicki as a suspect in the case of 19-year-old Brookley Louks (pictured, right), who was reported missing June 24.

No charges have been filed in connection with the disappearance of Louks, whose family was acquainted with Nowicki. Louks' mother said the 19-year-old used to do chores for him.

Nowicki is being held in the Johnson County Jail in Franklin with bail set at $150,000, though Nowicki lawyer Jay Hoffman said he would attempt to have his client's bail lowered during a separate hearing that began Monday and will continue on Friday.

Prosecutors will fight any attempt at bail reduction, and they may file a motion to increase bail "based on newly discovered evidence as far as (Nowicki's) dangerousness to the community," deputy prosecutor Rob Sleet said.