Former McHenry County man pleads guilty to 20-year-old sex crime

WOODSTOCK – A former McHenry County man pleaded guilty Thursday to sex crimes that were nearly 20 years old, but his defense attorney said Nathan R. Tuggle maintains his innocence.

Prosecutors agreed to drop a more serious charge of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child in exchange for Tuggle’s guilty plea to a Class 2 aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

“This was a plea of convenience,” defense attorney Hank Sugden said outside the courtroom, adding the 35-year-old Tuggle maintains his innocence.

Had the case gone to trial on a Class X felony and Tuggle lost, he would have faced a minimum of six years in prison.

A plea to a Class 2 felony means a sentencing range is three to seven years. Tuggle is eligible for probation. He must register for 10 years as a sex offender.

Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Zalud said the alleged sexual abuse occurred in Lakemoor between October 1996 and December 1998, when the female was under 13 years old and Tuggle was 17.

Tuggle remains free on bond, and, according to court records, he lives in Minnesota.

His guilty plea was accepted by McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather, who is scheduled to sentence him April 10.