AUGUSTA -- An Augusta man will spend almost five years in prison for starting a fire Jan. 1, 2008, that gutted an historic Murray Street home while the occupants were out of state.

Ronald A. Hanson Jr., 33, pleaded guilty in June 2008 in Kennebec County Superior Court to two two counts of arson, one involving the home that was built in the 1870s, the other involving a vehicle that was set fire Sept. 16, 2005, in Belgrade.

He was sentenced this morning to 12 years in prison, with all but 59 months of that suspended, and four years of probation.

Part of his sentence requires that he cooperate with authorities in any case against an unnamed codefendant.

In both cases, Hanson was accused of setting fires to enable someone else to collect insurance proceeds.