Man Who Set House On Fire With Mother Inside Gets 15 Years

OSWEGO, IL — An Oswego resident has been sentenced to 15 years in jail after he pleaded guilty to a charge of residential arson earlier this year, the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office said in a release. Authorities said he lit his house on fire with his mother still inside.

Christopher A. Gongora, 30, of the 700 block of Richmond Drive, has remained in custody since his arrest last June, when Oswego police and Oswego Fire Protection District Firefighters responded to a fire in his house. No one was injured in the fire, but Gongora was seen walking away from the home without a shirt or shoes.

He later admitted to police that he started the fire by lighting his mattress using hand sanitizer. Officers also found evidence that Gongora barricaded his door with a dresser to prevent firefighters from getting to the fire. After lighting the fire, he escaped the residence through a window. According to the state’s attorney’s office, Gongora later admitted to starting the fire after ingesting methamphetamine. Gongora’s mother was inside the house when the fire started.

In the statement, Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis said Gongora has a history of arson offenses, including committing the same type of offense in a neighboring county in 2016. He said drug use was also a factor in that case.

Weis said offenses like the one Gongora pleaded guilty to place lives in danger.

"Here, Gongora put his mother, himself,and emergency responders in harm’s way again based on his criminal actions. Taking into consideration Gongora being a recent repeat offender, the ramifications need to be significant to protect the public from future criminal activity," he said.

Chief Circuit Court Judge Robert Pilmer sentenced Gongora, who will be required to serve two years of mandatory supervised release after he completes his jail term.