A DeKalb County jury this week found a southern Illinois man guilty of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.

Andrew C. Burnett, now 22, faces a minimum of 30 years in prison in the Illinois Department of Corrections. His sentencing date hasn’t yet been set, court records show.

After a three-day trial, Burnett was convicted on Wednesday on five counts of the Class X felony in connection with the repeated abuse of a boy under the age of 13, records show. His maximum sentence could be 120 years.

State’s Attorney Riley Oncken said in a news release that the victims – two children – testified in person during the trial. He commended their courage. The other child’s case against Burnett remains pending in court.

“They faced their abuser in court and told their horrific stories of abuse to the jury and the jury did the right thing, believing them and disregarding Burnett’s incredible story that the kids made the entire thing up,” Oncken said in the release.

Charged on July 30, 2024, Burnett was extradited from Williamson County to DeKalb County to await trial.

Prosecutors at the time alleged Burnett sexually assaulted two children multiple times over the course of several months while in DeKalb County, according to court records. The children told police that they tried to stop Burnett from attacking them, but he did not, police wrote a July 30, 2024, court filing.

A victim interview where the child relayed the abuse which led to Burnett’s charges was “instrumental” as prosecutors Alicia Caplan and Joseph Hodder built their case, Oncken said.

The DeKalb County Family Service Agency has a Children’s Advocacy Center for abuse cases in DeKalb. The room provides a private and safe environment for minors to detail to authorities instances where they’ve been abused.

“April is Child Abuse Prevention Month and this case is a perfect example of law enforcement, service providers, and the State’s Attorney’s Office working together to keep kids safe and get justice for abused children,” Oncken said in the release.

A pre-sentencing hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. June 22 in front of Circuit Court Judge Philip Montgomery.

Burnett remains in custody at the DeKalb County Jail in Sycamore.

He still faces additional charges of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child.

He’s also charged with sexually assaulting an adult male while in custody at the county jail, according to the state’s attorney’s office. He was charged on March 23 in connection with a Sept. 6, 2025, incident, records show.

Burnett is represented by the DeKalb County Public Defender’s Office, records show.

Oncken said the conviction was also a chance to share the importance of speaking out when something is wrong.

“I want to encourage parents to remind their kids that no one should ever hurt them and that it is never a child’s fault if someone abuses them,” Oncken said in the release. “Far too often, abusers manipulate and threaten child victims to remain silent and predators get away with continued abuse.”