A man accused of sexually abusing a child over several years in Montgomery County, Texas, now faces a fresh warrant in Choctaw County, Oklahoma, even as a Louisiana missing-persons investigation continues for a mother and daughter who were last seen with him before his arrest. James Michael Nona, 42, has been held in the Montgomery County jail since his July capture, but the case has only grown more complicated since then, spanning Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana and intersecting with an active missing-persons investigation.
According to KXII, Nona now faces a new Choctaw County warrant accusing him of lewd or indecent acts with a child under 16. Under Oklahoma law, that charge is punishable by 3 to 20 years in prison, rising to 25 years to life if the child is under 12, and it carries sex offender registration. The offense is also subject to an 85-percent requirement, according to a 2022 cheat sheet compiled by Bob Wyatt of Wyatt Law Office.
A Years-Long Texas Investigation
The case traces back to July 18, 2023, when the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office opened an investigation after a victim under age 14 reported facing sexual abuse over a period of several years, according to KHOU. Nona allegedly fled Texas upon learning he was under investigation, only to be located in Oklahoma. In Texas, the underlying charge of Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Young Child is a first-degree felony, per the station's report.
Nona's first brush with Oklahoma law enforcement came during a routine traffic stop for speeding in Choctaw County, where he presented himself as Jordan Hill before facial recognition software revealed his outstanding Texas warrant, as reported by EastTexasRadio. Choctaw County authorities subsequently charged him with obtaining drugs by fraud before he was extradited back to Texas.
Cut Monitor, Fled, Then Vanished Again
Nona was released on bond in Montgomery County on October 23, 2024, fitted with a court-ordered GPS ankle monitor. He cut the monitor and fled on November 25, 2025, per the same account, traveling through Louisiana under the aliases Trevor Craw and Dusty Crawford while on the run. Investigators eventually caught up with him on July 27, 2026, in Galveston, Texas, through a joint operation involving the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office SWAT Team, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Galveston Police Department, according to FOX 26 Houston. He was alone when taken into custody.
In August, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Special Victims Unit publicly solicited potential additional victims under Case #23A209127, noting that investigators are also looking into allegations of additional victims in Oklahoma. Anyone with relevant information was urged to contact the agency at 936-760-5800.
Mother And Daughter Still Missing
On August 4, the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office asked for help locating Danielle Escue Lea, 39, and her 11-year-old daughter Alayna Lea, who had been missing since July 28. They were last seen with Nona before his arrest and were not with him when SWAT officers took him into custody in Galveston, leaving their whereabouts unknown.
Search efforts in the Atchafalaya Basin have involved watercraft, K9 units, drones and canvassing, according to WAFB, via Websleuths. Officials have noted that a relative of the missing mother is an employee of the Baton Rouge Police Department.
Family members have voiced heightened concern because both mother and daughter require daily prescription medications for medical conditions they may now be without, according to Unfiltered With Kiran. Relatives have said Danielle met Nona around April 2026 before telling family she and her daughter were moving to Texas.
Nona remains held in the Montgomery County jail facing the continuous child sexual abuse charges in Texas along with the new Oklahoma warrant out of Choctaw County. The search for Danielle and Alayna Lea continues across the Louisiana basin, with their whereabouts still unresolved.
