Kanawha deputy indicted for sexually assaulting a shackled inmate in his courthouse office
On Aug. 18, 2026, a federal grand jury indicted former Kanawha County Sheriff's Office deputy Cass Aaron Close, 56, on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, alleging he sexually assaulted a female inmate in his custody on July 29, 2025, while on duty as a bailiff at the Kanawha County Judicial Annex. At a detention hearing, a federal prosecutor said the woman was shackled at the ankles, was taken into Close's office several times that day, and that Close confessed. A related civil case names three more alleged victims; federal investigators have met with two. State charges were dropped in favor of the federal case, which carries up to life in prison. Close was fired and remains in custody. No public account has been given of how a deputy could repeatedly take an inmate into his office unobserved.
Close reportedly sexually assaulted a female inmate at the Kanawha County Judicial Building in July 2025.
Investigators said Close admitted the woman was in shackles during the encounter, per WCHS.
An indictment is merely an allegation.
Not yet contacted for this story.
Not yet contacted for this story.
No outcome recorded yet.