A Sterling man was sentenced to six years in prison Tuesday after admitting he set a 2023 Sterling house fire in the middle of the night after learning a registered sex offender lived there.

Nathan Pyron, 36, pleaded guilty to residential arson as part of a plea deal that included the dismissal of one felony count of aggravated arson, knowing people are present, that could have landed him in prison for up to 30 years.

In making his plea, Pyron pleaded guilty to starting a garage fire around 1 a.m. June 29, 2023, in the 1800 block of 22nd Avenue in Sterling. The flames spread from the attached garage into the house; the man living in the home escaped the flames, then went back inside and was able to escape again after retrieving his pet dog.

In laying out the facts of the case, Whiteside County State’s Attorney Colleen Buckwalter told the court Tuesday that Pyron set the fire after learning the resident was a registered sex offender. Pyron could have been sentenced anywhere from 4 to 15 years on the residential arson charge.

Just prior to Judge Jennifer Rangel-Kelly accepting Pyron’s guilty plea, the victim made an impact statement in which he questioned why Pyron wasn’t charged with attempted murder.

Choked with emotion, the victim said he nearly lost his life in the fire, which he said was set because he was living in the same neighborhood as one of Pyron’s relatives – the same relative that the victim said had told Pyron just days before the fire that the victim was a registered sex offender.

“What made you decide to become a vigilante against someone you didn’t know?” the man asked Pyron.

The victim said the fire was set while he was asleep in his bed, adding that he woke up in the chaos of a burning home while forced to breathe in thick smoke that choked him as he was trying to escape.

“The fear is something I will never forget,” he said. “This was a life-threatening act. The impact did not end that night. Surviving something like that changes you permanently.”

The victim said he had come a long way since his time in prison and pointed out that he is free while Pyron is heading to prison, a place where he would face worries about what people in there would do to him and how his own family was faring on the outside.

Rangel-Kelly shared some of those same thoughts when handing down the sentence, which carries a mandate that Pyron serve at least three years in prison.

“You are quite lucky you did not get charged with something more serious,” the judge said. “You are lucky [he] didn’t perish. You don’t get to take matters into your own hands or serve what you believe is justice.”

Pyron did not make a statement to the court prior to sentencing. He was ordered to pay $9,325 in restitution to the homeowner, must serve one year of mandatory supervised release after he is released from prison, and must register with the statewide arsonist database.

Pyron, who had been on release on bond and had no prior felony convictions, was immediately taken into custody after sentencing.