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Macon County Sheriff Charles Cannon Jr. dies

Cannon was suspended for two months this year after a grand jury indicted him on a sexual battery charge.

Macon County's sheriff died Wednesday morning after several days in the Medical Center-Navicent Health in Macon.

The county's coroner, Brenda Oglesby, says Sheriff Charles Cannon Jr. was stricken with a sudden illness Saturday. She could not release further details.

She said he died around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Cannon was suspended by Gov. Nathan Deal for two months this year after a grand jury indicted him on a sexual battery charge.

Last year, according to a police report, a woman in Ellaville in Schley County, accused Cannon of inappropriate touching.

Oglesby said Cannon recently returned to work after serving that suspension.

Cordele Circuit District Attorney Brad Rigby did not return our phone calls for an update on the charge against Cannon.

Cannon came from a law-enforcement family. He was elected sheriff in 2016, replacing his father, Charles Cannon Sr.

His uncle, Harold Cannon, was Oglethorpe's police chief and his cousin, Wesley Cannon, is Byron's police chief.