Dongola man pleads guilty to burglary, criminal sexual abuse

A Dongola man has pleaded guilty to two felony charges and will serve time in prison.

Union County State’s Attorney Tyler R. Edmonds announced Tuesday, Feb. 23, that Brandon D. Griffin, 26, of 445 Frey Ln., Dongola, entered a plea of guilty to one count of burglary and one count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Burglary is a Class 1 felony. Aggravated criminal sexual abuse is a Class 2 felony.

Edmonds said Griffin entered his plea Tuesday, Feb. 16, before presiding Judge Mark Boie during a hearing at the Union County Courthouse in Jonesboro.

Griffin will serve five years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Griffin was charged in connection with a burglary at the Dongola Church of Christ at 460 Northeast Front St. in Dongola in March 2008.

Following an extensive investigation conducted by the Union County Sheriff’s Office and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, ATF, Griffin was arrested on the burglary charge in November 2009.

His arrest came as part of the Operation FASTEN (Federal and State Trafficking Enforcement Network) initiative.

FASTEN is a joint effort involving ATF, the Illinois State Police, and the sheriff’s offices in Union, Alexander and Pulaski counties.

The FASTEN initiative focused on a series of burglaries which had occurred throughout the region, along with the related trafficking of stolen firearms.

The state’s attorney reported that Griffin’s plea to an unrelated charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse stemmed from sexual acts committed with a minor under the age of 17 between 2007 and 2009 at a Dongola residence.

In addition to the five-year sentence, Griffin will be required to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.

Aggravated criminal sexual abuse charges were filed in June 2009 following an investigation by the Union County Sheriff’s Office.