FAYETTE COUNTY — A 22-year-old Vandalia man was sentenced Monday in Fayette County court to 1-year in the Illinois Department of Corrections after he pleaded guilty to the lesser of four sex offenses.

Austin Lewis had been facing with three counts Class 2 felony aggravated criminal sexual abuse and one count Class 4 felony grooming.

Lewis pleaded guilty Monday to the Class 4 grooming charge in exchange for the three Class 2 felony charges being dismissed.

Charging documents had claimed Lewis committed acts of penetration with the victim who was at least 13 years of age but less than 17 years of age at the time of the alleged acts.

He could have been sentenced to between 3 and 7 years in prison on each Class 2 charge had he been convicted.

The grooming charge to which he pleaded guilty states Lewis “knowingly used a computer on-line service to seduce” the victim.