Hawthorne Man Charged in Sexual Battery Cases Involving Juvenile

HAWTHORNE – A 21-year-old Hawthorne man is facing multiple felony charges in two separate cases involving allegations of sexual battery against a juvenile victim, according to court records.

Austen William Cassels has been charged in one case stemming from incidents that allegedly occurred when both he and the victim were juveniles. Although the incidents were reported to have taken place several years ago, the abuse was not disclosed until last year. Cassels is now charged as an adult in that case.

According to investigators, the victim described two incidents of sexual battery during an interview with the Child Protection Team. The victim was in elementary school at the time of the alleged offenses. Cassels has been charged with sexual battery with the offender under 18 and the victim under 12. After being advised of his Miranda rights, Cassels reportedly said he did not remember one of the incidents and denied the other.

The second case involves allegations that occurred several years later, when Cassels was an adult and the victim was in middle school. In that case, investigators reported that the victim provided a text message exchange in which Cassels allegedly offered money and a favor in exchange for sexual activity. The messages were sent several months after an incident in which Cassels is accused of molesting the victim.

In the second case, Cassels has been charged with lewd and lascivious molestation of a victim under the age of 16 and use of an electronic device to solicit a child. Following a post-Miranda interview, Cassels reportedly said he did not remember communicating with the victim about sexual activity but later stated he may have “said some things to her” while intoxicated. He denied sexually battering the victim.

Court records indicate Cassels has at least nine prior felony convictions and has served two state prison sentences. One sentence resulted from a 2022 conviction for burglary and seven counts of firearm theft.

Arrest warrants for the sexual battery cases were issued after investigations were completed, but Cassels had been incarcerated in state prison since April 2024 on an unrelated Baker County case. He was released from prison on Dec. 1, 2025, and immediately arrested and booked into the Alachua County Jail.

The Baker County arrest also constituted a violation of Cassels’ probation in the 2022 case, and he is being held on that violation in addition to the new charges.

Judge James Colaw ordered Cassels held without bail pending trial on the sexual battery cases.

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