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HAWTHORNE ‒ A 34-year-old Hawthorne man is facing a lengthy list of felony charges after deputies found him lying in the road with a loaded short-barreled rifle on Sunday morning.

Deputies and Alachua County Fire Rescue responded around 6:30 a.m. on April 6, 2025, to a report of a man lying in the 18100 block of Southwest 243rd Street. When they arrived, they found Jonathan James Russel Sweat on his back with a rifle resting on his chest.

Deputies removed the firearm so paramedics could render aid. The weapon was found to be a short-barreled rifle with a barrel measuring just three inches—well below the legal minimum of 16 inches—and its serial number had been removed. The gun was loaded with nine 9 mm rounds.

During a search incident to arrest, deputies also reported finding a glass pipe commonly used to smoke illegal drugs.

Sweat was transported to a hospital for treatment and admitted. He has since been charged with possession of a short-barreled rifle, ten counts of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm with an altered serial number, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was also booked on outstanding warrants for driving without a valid license and violating probation.

According to court records, Sweat has a criminal history that includes six felony convictions and nine misdemeanors, including one for a violent offense. He previously served a state prison sentence and was released in 2013. He is currently on probation for driving without a valid license and was fined in a 2024 case involving battery and drug paraphernalia. Court records show he has not paid any of those fines.

The probation violation warrant requires Sweat be held without bond. Bail was set at $10,000 for the license charge, and Judge Meshon Rawls set an additional $177,000 bail for the new charges.

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Email cwalker@

alachuatoday.com

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