Detectives Charge 33-Year-Old Hackettstown Man With The Sexual Assault Of 15-Year-Old
Thursday, May 30, 2024, 6:30 A.M. ET. By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP, NJ.- Following an investigation into allegations of the sexual assault of a teen, a 33-year-old Hackettstown, New Jersey man remains jailed pending a detention hearing after being taken into custody last Thursday and formally charged with multiple sex crimes offenses.
According to Acting Warren County Prosecutor Anthony Picione, on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, the Independence Township Police Department received a report regarding the alleged sexual assault of a 15-year-old child by a man who was known to the teen.
A swift-moving investigation by Detectives of the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit and the Independence Township Police Department concluded after interviewing witnesses including the child victim that Matthew Canavan, 33, of Hackettstown, New Jersey, sexually assaulted the child who knew each other on multiple occasions.
Accordingly, on Thursday, May 23, 2024, Canavan was taken into custody and formally charged with two counts of second-degree Sexual Assault; two counts of third-degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child; and two counts of fourth-degree Criminal Sexual Contact.
Following being processed on the charges, Canavan was remanded to the Warren County Jail where he remains pending future court proceedings in Warren County Superior Court in Belvidere, New Jersey. If convicted on the charges, Canavan will face a potential 10-year New Jersey State Prison Term.
“The rules of the court requires us to include a statement, that states: The charges outlined in this publication are merely accusations and the defendant and or defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.”
