After pleading guilty to various crimes, including one act of neglect of a dependent resulting in death and two counts of neglect of a dependent, an Indiana man was sentenced to forty-five years in prison. The conviction of the defendant, 27-year-old Rona, comes more than a year after the terrible death of his girlfriend’s 1-year-old child, Oaklee, whose broken body was discovered stacked among furniture in an abandoned Indiana home. The defendant was detained in Colorado on an Oklahoma bench warrant.
As part of a plea agreement, the defendant avoided more serious charges, including murder, which were dismissed in return for his guilty plea. The plea agreement, accepted by Indiana prosecutors, brings an end to a case that spanned many states and received significant attention owing to the disturbing circumstances surrounding the child’s death.
The investigation began in January 2023, when the victim’s biological father reported her and her younger sibling missing from their home in Oklahoma. Authorities said that the victim’s mother, Madison, and her lover, the defendant, transported the children to Indiana without the father’s permission.
The next month, witnesses claimed to see the victim’s mother carrying an inert infant covered in a blanket, claiming she needed to take the child to the hospital. However, the child’s transportation to a medical facility never occurred. The mother later informed detectives that her spouse had physically mistreated her child, causing her death. She said that when she tried to contact 911, the defendant blocked her from doing so. They then concealed the child’s body in a dresser drawer in an abandoned property in Indiana.
Eventually, investigators discovered Oaklee’s infant sibling abandoned at a house associated with illegal drug activity and reunited him with his father.
During the investigation, the victim’s mother stated that her spouse routinely used physical punishment on her 1-year-old child, beating her for common toddler conduct such as wrongly grasping a fork or urinating in her diaper. The probable cause affidavit further states that the defendant choked her out on several occasions.
The mother reportedly told authorities that her youngster began to avoid eating in front of her partner out of dread of his reaction. She stated that the toddler frequently reacted aggressively if she did not eat quickly enough to satisfy him.
Police caught the mother in March 2023, and she later guided them to her child’s body. She pleaded guilty to negligence charges and agreed to testify against her spouse as part of the plea bargain.
On the day of her child’s death, the mother reportedly told investigators that she heard the man scream for the infant after briefly moving away. When she returned, she saw him cradling the unconscious infant, reiterating that he had done nothing and that it was not his fault. He initially refused to hand over the girl and began peeling her clothes, displaying what appeared to be blood and saliva flowing from her lips as she gurgled and struggled to breathe. Her eyes remained closed throughout.
The mother also stated that her partner would not allow her to phone 911. Instead, he wrapped the infant in a blanket and put her in the backseat of his car. The parent subsequently checked on the infant and discovered that she had stopped breathing, her lips had become blue, and her skin was cold. She could no longer detect a heartbeat or any signs of life.
The suspect was detained in Colorado for an outstanding warrant. Initially charged with various offenses, including murder, he accepted a plea deal in May 2025, which resulted in the discharge of more serious accusations. His sentencing date is slated for June 13.
The case has received a lot of attention because of the tragic circumstances surrounding the child’s death and the subsequent court actions involving her mother and her partner.