INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The man alleged to have killed a one-year-old toddler found in a dresser in an abandoned home pled guilty Thursday to three felonies.
Court records show Roan Waters agreed to plead guilty to neglect of a dependent resulting in death, a level 1 felony and two counts of neglect of a dependent, level 6 felonies.
As part of the agreement, the murder charge against Waters was dropped. He was previously charged with:
- One count of murder
- Two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death
- One count of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious injury
- One count of battery resulting in injury when the victim is under 14
- Two counts of neglect of a dependent that endangers the dependent
- One count of neglect of a dependent where dependent is abandoned or cruelly confined
Oaklee’s mother Madison Marshall, 24, faced several neglect charges following the 2023 death of her daughter, Oaklee Snow.
Marshall pleaded guilty to one count of neglect of a dependent resulting in death and one count of neglect of a dependent. Five other charges relating to child neglect were dismissed.
As part of the agreement, she will serve a 25-year sentence in Indiana Department of Corrections: 25 years for neglect resulting in death and two years for neglect of a dependent. These sentences will be served at the same time.
News 8 previously reported Snow and another male child were taken from their biological father in Oklahoma in January 2023 by Marshall and her then boyfriend, Roan Waters.
After running with the children, the pair were arrested the following April. Marshall was located in North Carolina, while Waters was taken into custody by Colorado police.
Snow’s body was found in a dresser drawer inside an abandoned building in Morgan County. The Marion County coroner ruled her cause of death as “homicide by unspecified means.”
The kidnapped boy had been abandoned but was later located and returned to his father in Oklahoma.
The plea deal for Waters carries a 45-year sentence and by accepting the plea Waters waives his right to appeal any sentence imposed by the court.
Waters’ and Marshall’s sentencing is set for June 13.
(Booking Photos, Madison Marshall and Roan Waters)
