Manhunt

Summary

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Cold Case Files – Episode Summary: “Manhunt”

Podcast: Cold Case Files
Host: Paula Barros (A&E / PodcastOne)
Original Release: September 2, 2025
Episode Theme:
This gripping episode delves into the national manhunt for James Allen Selby, a prolific serial rapist who evaded law enforcement for years while terrorizing victims across multiple states. With chilling survivor accounts, firsthand law enforcement perspectives, and a focus on the evolving science of DNA forensics, the episode chronicles how an elusive predator was finally brought to justice.

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Main Theme & Purpose

The episode “Manhunt” explores the relentless search for justice in a series of sexual assaults and attempted murders committed over several years by James Allen Selby. Spanning Oklahoma, Nevada, California, Arizona, and Colorado, the case highlights the way cold case investigations and DNA databases can finally bring closure to even the most challenging cases. The narrative is anchored by survivor testimony, the trauma endured by victims and their families, the doggedness of investigators, and the eventual impact of forensic breakthroughs.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Crimes Begin: Oklahoma, 1999

[00:32]

• Victim: Nine-year-old Sarah Jones is abducted from her home in Noble, Oklahoma and sexually assaulted in a nearby field.
• Family’s Ordeal: Sarah’s mother, Melissa, describes the frantic search for her daughter and the subsequent trauma.
• Early Clue: DNA evidence is collected from a rape kit, but there is no immediate suspect.
• Quote:
  • “Her hair is just everywhere... she’s screaming my name just in such a voice that I’ve never heard before.” – Melissa Jones ([03:00])

2. Initial Investigation & Suspect Emerges

[04:03]

• Investigators: Gerald Moody and Rhett Burnett pursue leads through neighborhood canvassing.
• Prime Suspect: James Selby, a nearby houseguest with a prior sexual assault charge in Arizona, raises suspicions by volunteering information and then fleeing, making him their “number one person to look at.”
  • Quote:
    • “He sent up nothing but red flags... maybe I'm talking to the guy.” – Rhett Burnett ([05:10])

3. New Attacks, New States: Nevada & California

[06:55]

• Nevada, 2001: Detective Tom Miller responds to the rape of a 12-year-old girl. Selby, now a maintenance man, disappears after DNA is recovered from a toothbrush matching DNA at the crime scene ([09:36]).
• California, 2001: Serial rapist strikes four times in San Diego, profile matches with earlier cases.
  • Police Frustration:
    • “We had no idea who we were chasing. We didn’t even have a race.” – Detective Jack Nish ([12:34])

4. A Pattern Emerges: Psychological Profiling and Escalation

• Consistent MO: The attacker covers victims’ faces, assaults under cover of darkness, and evades physical identification.
• Rise in Fear:
  • Increased patrols, community outcry, and pressure on law enforcement.
  • “It’s every woman’s worst fear – to be in the safety of your own home and then have somebody come in and... violate you.” – Detective David Dolan, San Diego ([11:12])

5. Arizona Attacks & Survival

[15:52]

• Victims: Tiffany Nakajima (University of Arizona student), two college students, a 14-year-old, and later Tamara Faust are all attacked within months.
• Brutality: The rapist repeatedly uses a knife, binds and blindfolds victims, often threatens or attempts to kill.
  • Notable Survival:
    • “He put the knife up to my throat and said, 'Are you gonna tell anyone?' ... And then he cut across my throat twice.” – Tiffany Nakajima ([16:50])

6. Breakthrough: CODIS DNA Links & Tri-State Connection

[20:13]

• DNA Coordination: Brian Burritt (San Diego PD) enters unsolved rape DNA into the CODIS national database; Arizona and California get a match ([21:07]).
• Desperation:
  • “At some point, you’re just hoping... hopefully this guy, if we can’t catch him, at least gets arrested and his DNA gets entered into the system.” – Brian Burritt ([21:54])

7. Manhunt Intensifies – The Suspect Identified

[27:06]

• Oklahoma Conference: Captain Moody pushes to run Sarah Jones’s case through CODIS, resulting in a hit that matches Selby’s DNA across all involved states.
• Selby’s Profile: Desert Storm army veteran, transient, and highly mobile, uses VA clinics and homeless shelters to disappear.
  • “We did have enough information that made him probably our number one person... and when he took off, just pretty much solidified it in our mind.” – Rhett Burnett ([05:47])

8. The Arrest: Colorado Springs, 2002

[29:28]

• Debbie Fowler’s Account: VA clinic worker identifies Selby after a call to Tucson authorities—he is calmly apprehended while requesting shoes ([30:04]).
  • Quote:
    • “Do you know who you have in your office? Oh, my God... he is a rapist.” – VA staff relaying Tucson’s warning ([30:04])

9. Prosecution and Jailhouse Insights

[33:03]

• Jailhouse Interview: Detective Malik Madani talks with Selby, noting his control over conversation and lack of confession.
  • Quote:
    • “He just talked. I mean, I barely asked any questions. He was always in control.” ([34:50])
• Media Interview:
  • “He blamed the war a lot, the Gulf War... and he was a decorated veteran too.” – Reporter AJ Flick ([37:00])
  • “It’s a cold feeling when you have to shoot someone you don’t know. You change your whole outlook on life.” – James Selby ([36:40])

10. The Trial and Aftermath

[38:40]

• Selby’s Defense: Chooses to represent himself, tries to argue mistaken identity despite overwhelming DNA evidence.
• Victim Courage:
  • “His voice sounded familiar to me, and it made me nauseous.” – Tiffany Nakajima ([39:31])
• Verdict and Closure: Selby found guilty, then commits suicide before sentencing. Survivors express relief and hope for moving forward.
  • Quote:
    • “I don’t feel cheated with his suicide at all. In some ways, it closes a big door for me.” – Tiffany Nakajima ([40:09])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Quote | Speaker | |---|---|---| | 03:00 | “Her hair is just everywhere... she’s screaming my name just in such a voice that I’ve never heard before.” | Melissa Jones | | 05:10 | “He sent up nothing but red flags... maybe I'm talking to the guy.” | Rhett Burnett | | 11:12 | “It’s every woman’s worst fear – to be in the safety of your own home and then have somebody come in and... violate you.” | Det. David Dolan | | 16:50 | “He put the knife up to my throat... And then he cut across my throat twice.” | Tiffany Nakajima | | 21:54 | “At some point, you’re just hoping... at least gets arrested and his DNA gets entered into the system.” | Brian Burritt | | 30:04 | “Do you know who you have in your office? Oh, my God... he is a rapist.” | VA staff (Debbie Fowler’s recollection) | | 34:50 | “He just talked. I mean, I barely asked any questions. He was always in control.” | Leslie Malik Madani | | 36:40 | “It’s a cold feeling when you have to shoot someone you don’t know. You change your whole outlook on life.” | James Selby | | 39:31 | “His voice sounded familiar to me, and it made me nauseous.” | Tiffany Nakajima | | 40:09 | “I don’t feel cheated with his suicide at all. In some ways, it closes a big door for me.” | Tiffany Nakajima |

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Detailed Timeline & Timestamps

• [00:32] — Sarah Jones is abducted and assaulted in Oklahoma.
• [04:03] — James Selby emerges as a suspect and disappears.
• [07:08] — New assault in Nevada; Selby vanishes again after being linked by DNA.
• [11:03] — San Diego sees a spree of stealth attacks by the same suspect.
• [15:52] — Arizona: Tiffany Nakajima’s brutal attack and survival.
• [18:52] — Series of unsolved Tucson assaults, culminating in a DNA breakthrough.
• [20:13–21:07] — Cross-state DNA matches via the national CODIS system.
• [27:06–28:53] — Investigators officially connect Selby to all major attacks.
• [29:28] — Selby is arrested in Colorado after walking into the VA seeking help.
• [33:00–34:50] — Detective and media interviews with Selby, highlighting his mindset.
• [38:40] — Selby’s courtroom theatrics and the collapse of his self-defense.
• [40:09] — Victims reflect on closure in the wake of Selby’s suicide.

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Conclusion

“Manhunt” is a sobering look at the cost and complexity of serial predation, the hard-won victories of forensic science, and the resilience of victims. Through methodical investigation, survivor bravery, and advances in DNA technology, a years-long nightmare is ended for several victims and their families. The case also serves as a testament to the rare but critical success stories in America’s ongoing struggle with unsolved violent crime.

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Transcript

[A]

Hi, cold case listeners. I'm Marissa Pinson, and before we get into this week's episode, I just wanted to remind you that episodes of Cold Case Files, as well as the A and E classic podcasts, I Survived, American justice and City Confidential, are all available ad free on the new A and E Crime and investigation channel on Apple Podcasts and Apple plus for just $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year. And now onto the show. This episode contains stories involving violence against children. Listener discretion is advised.

[B]

It started pretty much like any other day. I opened the front door and I went in and there was someone in my house. And he came up from behind me and put a knife to my throat. He had me lay down on the bed and then next thing I knew, he was on top of me. He put the knife up to my throat and said, reach. Are you gonna tell anyone? Then he said, you're not going to tell anyone. And he cut across my throat twice.

[A]

There are over 100,000 cold cases in America. Only 1% are ever solved. This is one of those rare stories. It's September 1999 in Noble, Oklahoma. Nine year old Sarah Jones awakens in the middle of the night to find herself outside being carried through a field.

[B]

At first I thought it was a dream, thinking that somebody took me outside and said that our house was burning down. And then I put my foot down to see if I was actually outside and I just woke up and I was like, this can't be right.

[A]

The man carrying Sarah moves into the trees and out of sight of her home.

[B]

He laid me on the ground and told me to take my shorts off and I started screaming and yelling and I told him no. And then he put some kind of leather glove in my mouth. And then since I wouldn't take my shorts off, he took them off for me.

[A]

As Sarah is being molested, her mother, Melissa Jones, decides to look in on the nine year old.

[B]

I noticed that Sarah wasn't in her bed then. That's when I started panicking.

[A]

Melissa jumps into her car and begins driving up and down the road.

[B]

At this point I'm thinking maybe if they hear me scream or they see my headlights, that if they're still in the area that she'll come running back to me. At that time I was screaming and fighting and trying to just break free and get home again. And then he told me he was gonna kill me if I didn't quit. So I quit and I let my defenses down.

[A]

After 45 minutes, the attacker finishes and gets up to leave.

[B]

He told me to stay there because he'd be right back because he went to go get his friend or something. And so I got up and I ran to a neighbor's house. Her hair is just everywhere. She's got leaves in her hair. She has on a sports bra and that's it. She's barefooted and she's screaming my name just in such a voice that I've.

[C]

Never heard it before.

[B]

Would never hear it again if I could.

[A]

Sarah is taken to a hospital where her mother's worst fears are confirmed.

[B]

I had a good idea of what might have happened at that point. I knew what had been attempted, but I didn't know how far it had gotten.

[A]

A rape kit exam detects the presence of semen. The kit is tagged as evidence and sent off to the state crime lab for DNA analysis. Meanwhile, the hunt for a predator begins. The following morning at 9:30am Investigator Gerald Moody arrives at the home of Sarah Jones. Crime scene investigators lead him to the back of the house.

[C]

The perpetrator came up here. The window wasn't locked and he just raised it. The young lady was just inside there laying on, on the bed. We done what we call a neighborhood canvas. We went to the each residence and talk to them kind of just in a real quick manner just to find out who lived there, who was there that night, and any new people in the area. This area in here is really dark and we figured whoever came in came in on foot.

[A]

Investigator Rhett Burnett assists Moody with the canvas, starting with the trailer home adjacent to Sarah's and a nervous house guest named James Selby.

[C]

One of the first things he brought up to me was the fact that the police aren't going to ramrod me again. I was charged with a crime in Arizona that I did not commit. And so immediately at that point I was like, man, you've really had a rough time. What happened to you?

[A]

Selby had been arrested for a sexual assault in Marana, Arizona a year earlier, but was able to beat the charges. Burnett finds the admission to be unusual.

[C]

I found it very odd that he would be telling me information that was real similar to what had occurred here. He sent up nothing but red flags. He sent up things that sort of gave you a tingle down the back of your spine that maybe I'm talking to the guy.

[A]

Sarah's attacker kept his face hidden, making any sort of identification by the nine year old impossible. Selby, however, agrees to provide a DNA sample for investigators and makes plans to come down to the sheriff's office. But Selby skips town and disappears altogether, leaving investigators frustrated and their investigation at a standstill.

[C]

We did have enough information that made him probably our number one person to look at and try and eliminate. And when he took off, just pretty much solidified it in our mind that he was probably our guy. It was very haunting every morning when you get up and as an investigator, to have a case like this laying in your file unsolved, very frustrating. But without the evidence, it just leaves us waiting.

[A]

While police wait, Sarah's family lives day to day wondering if the answers will ever come and if their lives will ever be whole again.

[B]

I had begin to think that it would not that they just closed it and said another one went through the cracks, they've moved on and it, it would go unsolved and we would be.

[C]

Looking over our shoulders the rest of.

[B]

Our lives for a while. For the first year and a half or so that's all I thought about because it was kind of scary and it interfered with all my sports and all the things I did around with my friends and my family.

[A]

There is a rapist at large and he's moving west.

[C]

Well, Sparks is community of approximately 70,000 residents.

[A]

It's April 2001 in Sparks, Nevada. It's 9am on a Monday morning and detective Tom Miller heads to a crime scene. The victim is 12 years old and she has just been raped.

[C]

She was asleep and the front door was unlocked. The suspect entered and covered the victim's face with a blanket and pillow as she was sleeping and she was not able to get an identifiable look at the suspect. She indicated that the suspect told her, you know, don't scream or anything like and I won't hurt you. Officers led me to the bedroom where this occurred. I could see wet stuff, stain on the bed sheets, which was to me obviously ejaculate.

[A]

Just like the Sarah Jones assault. The 12 year old in Nevada never got a look at her attacker. Crime scene technicians tag the bed sheet as evidence and Detective Miller develops a theory about the rapist.

[C]

I'm thinking that the suspect has to be familiar with the schedule of the family, familiar with the layout of the apartment. So in that sense I'm thinking that the suspect probably had been plotting this out for quite a while.

[A]

Management at the apartment complex tells police their maintenance man James Selby had failed to show up for work that morning. Miller runs a quick background check on.

[C]

Selby discovered back in 1998 he had a case where he abducted a former acquaintance, a female.

[A]

Selby was acquitted of the 1998 charge. Nothing in the background report indicates Selby is also a suspect in the Oklahoma attack on 9 year old Sarah Jones in 1999. Detective Miller gets a search warrant and decides to open up Selby's old apartment and take a look around.

[C]

It had for the most part been evacuated, but I'm obviously hoping to find anything of DNA evidentiary value that I can somehow link to that left behind at the crime scene. We saw a variety of different items that were of potential value, the most blaring of which was a toothbrush that was left on the desk in the living room area of the apartment.

[A]

Detective Miller tags the toothbrush and sends it off to the county crime lab for DNA analysis.

[C]

When you're brushing your teeth, you're obviously leaving some cells behind.

[A]

Jeff Rowlands is a DNA criminalist with the Washoe County Crime Lab.

[C]

My goal is to get those cells so that we can get a DNA profile off of them.

[A]

On July 2, he attempts to strip DNA from the toothbrush taken out of James Selby's apartment.

[C]

I'll put the bristles into a tube and obviously I want as many as I can because we wanted to get a full DNA profile off of that.

[A]

Rowlands extracts a full genetic profile from human cells left behind on the bristles and compares it to semen found on the victim's bedsheet. The result is conclusive.

[C]

Greater than 1 in 500 billion. Without a doubt it was Selby.

[A]

Miller believes he has the name of his rapist. The problem is he has no idea of his whereabouts.

[C]

The fact that he can blend in and seem to be the model employee and seem to be so trustworthy. It was really obvious that this guy was quite efficient and quite an actor. And obviously my biggest fear was that he'd strike again.

[A]

A warrant is put out for Selby's arrest. Meanwhile, the suspect slips out of town and heads west again to San Diego.

[C]

I call him the boogeyman type. Sexual assault.

[A]

David Dolan is a detective out of San Diego specializing in sexual assault.

[C]

It's every woman's worst fear, is to be in the safety of your own home and then have somebody come in and not only violate the security of your home, but then to violate you. I can't imagine anything being worse than that.

[A]

In the summer of 2001, Dolan and his partner Jack Nish are hunting a serial rapist who has hit three homes in nine weeks. The last attack occurred on September 7th near the posh neighborhood known as Bankers Hill.

[C]

This case was at, I believe 3 o', clock, 3:30 in the morning. The point of entry was through a rear window and the window was unlocked. He gained control immediately and he sexually assaulted the victim. And this went on for a long time.

[A]

In each case, the victim is a young woman in her 20s.

[C]

He'll confront the victim, usually when they're asleep, and immediately blindfold them or put something over their face so they can't recognize who he is. And then he sexually assaults them and then would make them get into the shower or go to a secluded place within the house and. And he'd usually tell him to count to 1,000 and then he'd flee.

[A]

By fall, detectives have at least four assaults, all connected by DNA to the same attacker. An attacker who never let his victim see his face.

[C]

We had no idea who we were chasing. We didn't even have a race. We resorted to using psychological profiles, geographic profiles, submitting information to the Department of Justice, State of California. And even with all that, we're still coming up empty handed. He's very successful, he's very quiet, and he makes sure that nobody sees him while he's committing these acts.

[A]

Nish and Dolan search for the rapist in areas they feel he might hunt. Ground zero is Balboa park near Bankers Hill.

[C]

There's a lot of transients that sleep here or frequent this area, and then they wander off into the neighboring communities. And over our back is the Bankers Hill community where all the sexual assaults or majority of them took place.

[A]

Day and night, detectives camp out in the park looking for suspects and taking DNA samples. They come up empty in our communities.

[C]

We need to be on high alert again. There were a lot of people up in arms and concerned that the police department wasn't doing everything that we could do to find him. If we had an inkling of who he was or what he looked like, we would have arrested him immediately.

[A]

By December 2001, the attacks have stopped altogether, leaving detectives with no suspects, a string of cold crimes, and the uneasy feeling that a sexual predator is still at large in their community.

[C]

It was especially tough on the officers and detectives in my unit because people would never know he's still out and about. What happens if he comes back?

[A]

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[B]

Yeah, it started pretty much like any other day. I went to school and then I went back home, took a shower and was just relaxing and then I decided I need to go to the grocery store.

[A]

Tiffany returns to her off campus residence.

[B]

Around 2pm I open the front door and I went in and there was someone in my house and he came up from behind me and put a knife to my throat.

[A]

A man wraps a blindfold over Tiffany's eyes and instructs her not to scream.

[B]

He said that I had just come home too early is what he said. And that, you know, he didn't intend for anyone to be at home. He was just gonna rob the house.

[A]

The intruder leads Tiffany down a hall and into her bedroom.

[B]

I knew he had a knife, so I stayed very calm and just followed what he wanted. He had me lay down on the bed and then next thing I knew, he was on top of me and raping me.

[A]

The assault lasts for 20 minutes.

[B]

After he had already gotten dressed, he came up from behind me and he put the knife up to my throat and said, are you gonna tell anyone? And I, of course shook my head no. And then he said, you're not going to tell anyone. And he cut across my throat twice.

[A]

Apparently believing his victim to be dead, the attacker takes his time leaving the residence. Tiffany Nakajima, however, is very much alive.

[B]

I was just thinking, I'm gonna die, not gonna see my family again. I just need to survive. I went out the door and I screamed and he was walking away. He turned around, looked at me, and then he began to run away. He was a Caucasian man, kind of sandy brown hair. He was wearing a black T shirt and blue jeans.

[A]

Tiffany is taken to a local hospital where a rape kit is taken and semen is detected. Detective Mary Game begins working the case and discovers a similar assault had taken place earlier that morning at a house just across the street from Tiffany.

[B]

There were two college age girls living in the residence and one had been confronted by a male in her bathroom and he had grabbed her by the throat, told her he was there to rob her and not to give him any problem.

[A]

The description is similar to the man who attacked Tiffany Nakajima. And a composite sketch is circulated across campus, but no one is able to provide any useful information. Three weeks later and just a few miles away, a third attack occurs. DNA confirms it to be the same man who attacked Tiffany. And Mary Game has a serial predator on her hands.

[B]

This is a kind of a thoroughfare into kind of the center of the University of Arizona. Perhaps this person was traveling up and down this area either by bus or on bike or something. Because the attacks we had were on either side of this thoroughfare.

[A]

Patrols are stepped up for a man dubbed the Midtown Rapist. But then the Tucson attacks suddenly stop until January of 2002. This time, the victim is not a college student, but a 14 year old.

[B]

She wakes up to a male subject laying in the bed with her one.

[A]

Hand over her mouth and the other.

[B]

On her throat, telling her not to scream. Her hands were swabbed for potential DNA evidence and tested, and it matched our other two cases.

[A]

Once again, the investigation heats up and then goes nowhere. The profile is run through CODIS but fails to generate any hits, leaving Tiffany Nakajima to wonder if her attacker will ever be caught.

[B]

I was terrified that I didn't know if he knew my name, if he could come back and find me and try to finish the job. It was frustrating that he was still out there assaulting other people. Well, I pretty much became quite absorbed. You know, you kind of eat, drink and sleep the cases. What more can you do? What? You know, what haven't you done? When's this guy gonna hit again?

[A]

Mary Game is out of Leads and resigned to waiting for the next attack until she catches news of a break in California.

[C]

Well, this is a what we call a CODIS sheet.

[A]

Brian Burritt is the CODIS manager for the San Diego Police Department's crime.

[C]

This case is an unsolved sexual assault. And this gets reviewed and then it's given to me for data entry.

[A]

In March of 2002, Burritt pulls the CODIS sheet from the Bankers Hill rapes, a series of four attacks that occurred in San Diego during the summer of 2001. Each of the cases shares the same unknown suspect's DNA profile.

[C]

About two thirds of the cases that we work are unsolved cases. So we're definitely doing a big part of our job is to try to provide investigative leads to our detectives.

[A]

Burritt types a series of numbers into the program and hits enter. In a matter of moments, the DNA profile is uploaded into every CODIS data bank across the nation.

[C]

Once we uploaded to the national database and we started getting the matches with.

[A]

Arizona, news of the hit quickly reaches the Tucson crime lab.

[B]

We're notified by the lab that there is a match to some cases in San Diego. So they put us in contact with each other first.

[C]

We started with maybe a military connection, because there is a military base in Tucson, and of course, we have a huge military population here in San Diego. We came up dry on that. We looked at vehicles that had been registered in California, then were transferred to Arizona around that time. Again, we were coming up with nothing. At some point, you're just hoping, well, hopefully this guy, if we can't catch him, at least gets arrested and his DNA gets entered into the system, then we know who we're looking for.

[A]

That break would eventually come, but not soon enough for yet another victim out of Arizona.

[B]

So I woke up in the morning and took a shower. And after I got out of the shower, I walked into my bedroom.

[A]

Tamara Faust is 27 years old and about to become a statistic, one of a quarter million women in the United States who are sexually assaulted each year.

[B]

As soon as I entered my bedroom, I was grabbed from behind. My eyes were covered. And the man said, if you scream, I'll cut your throat.

[A]

Tamara doesn't scream, and instead she listens.

[B]

He said, I'm just here for your car and for your money. I just caught my girlfriend cheating on me, and I just killed her and the man that she was with. So I'm on the run from the police. Not gonna hurt you. The thoughts that were going through my mind were that this might be my Last day alive. And so my mind was only thinking about remaining as calm as possible, because I knew that if I stayed calm, that would help him remain calm.

[A]

The intruder binds Tamara's wrists and makes her lie down on the floor. Meanwhile, the dialogue continues.

[B]

He did say at one point, I'm not going to rape you. As soon as he put that idea that he was thinking about rape into my mind, I realized that it was a possibility.

[A]

Tamara gives the intruder her car keys and ATM card, hoping that now he will simply go away.

[B]

After he got everything that he said that he needed, he wasn't leaving. And that was when I began to realize that he wasn't being entirely honest with me. He started saying, you know, I think I wanna. He said, I think I wanna you.

[A]

Keeping his victim's face covered, the man then gets on top of Tamara and begins raping her.

[B]

He was talking to me. He was asking me if it felt good, if he was of adequate size. So I knew that even though I was a victim in the moment, I knew that after the assault was over, if I could survive the assault, I wouldn't be a victim anymore. I would be a survivor, and I could take control of my life again.

[A]

Tamara's rapist tells her he wants to stay with her for the remainder of the day. Tamara says she's late for a meeting and needs him to leave.

[B]

And he said, really? I said, yes. So he finished what he needed to do. And then he told me, he said, I'm going to have you count to 100. And once you get to 100, I'll be gone, and you can open your eyes. I was just laying there waiting, trying to figure out, where is he? What is he doing? Is he coming back? Can I look? Can I run? I need to get out of here. This could be my moment to escape. And I just sat and waited and waited and waited. And I was listening as hard as I could for any movement at all in my house or next to me. And all I could hear was my own breath.

[A]

Tamara frees herself, runs to a neighbor's house and calls police. Detective Mary Game receives the call.

[B]

I think when I first heard the call and was being sent over here, I pretty much knew it was the same guy.

[A]

The guy is a serial rapist linked through DNA to four attacks in the Tucson area and four more attacks in San Diego. Unlike the previous assaults, however, in this case, Mary Gaine believes she might have a useful lead. Tamara Foust's ATM card.

[B]

She lets us know that the bank card's gone. The bank is contacted. They tell us there was a transaction within 30 minutes after he's left her place.

[A]

Tamara's bank provides Game with photographs taken by a security camera at the time.

[B]

The transaction was made. The person in the video is holding a pamphlet, a printed paper or pamphlet in front of the lens. So once again his image is not captured.

[A]

The ATM lead goes nowhere and the rapist again appears to have frustrated detectives. That is until Mary Game gets on the phone with investigators in Oklahoma.

[C]

I guess the thing that shocked me the most about this was how freaking dark it was. It was.

[A]

Investigators Rhett Burnett and Captain Gerald Moody work Violent crimes in Cleveland County, Oklahoma. One day they pull out a picture of nine year old Sarah Jones. Three years ago she was carried out of her home and ran raped in a nearby field.

[C]

This is somebody that's been watching her for a while because there was no fooling around, there was no going to the wrong window. I mean he was able to get that window open, pull her out without waking her up. And her mom was in the front room. Never heard a thing.

[A]

During the original investigation, James Selby, a man staying next door to Sarah, became the number one suspect. Suspicion of Selby heightened when he failed to provide investigators with a sample of his DNA and then vanished.

[C]

I felt it is probably somebody that lived in the neighborhood since they just moved in.

[A]

Unable to take the investigation any further, the case went cold until August of 2002 when Captain Moody attends an investigators conference.

[C]

One of the instructors was from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation telling about they were going online with CODIS and if we had any cases that were pending. And I asked her, I said it's just one of the cases, just really bothers me. I would really enjoy it. I says I think it can be solved through codis. I says that's going to be the only way. Shortly after going online with codis, I got a telephone call from Tucson, Arizona. They told me that they had the same profile on the DNA as we had here in Oklahoma at that time. I told her, I said, well, I believe it to be James Selby.

[B]

As a result of that, Mr. Selby's name was run and it was determined he had a warrant for sexual assault out of Nevada.

[A]

The story in Nevada involves the rape of a 12 year old girl. James Selby again was the number one suspect. His DNA pulled off a toothbrush and linked to semen found at the crime scene. Selby's profile is then matched to all the outstanding rapes in California, Arizona and Oklahoma. Detectives now have the name of their rapist and the evidence to convict him. Now the manhunt for James Selby begins.

[B]

Checking into some history. He'd been in the military, in the army, had done some time in Desert Storm. He'd apparently gone to the VA here locally for some unknown medical reason. So that information was put out through the marshal's office to the va, so in case he turned up at another VA facility, we could be notified. The purpose of this resource center is to help our veterans. It's to help veterans get off the streets if they're homeless.

[A]

Debbie Fowler is an assistant for the homeless program at the Veterans Affairs Clinic in Colorado Springs. On September 24, 2002, she gets a visit from a Gulf War veteran named James Selby. He tells Debbie he is down on his luck and in need of a helping hand.

[B]

Shoes. That's all he needed was shoes because his was cracked on the soles at the bottom. And he said that he couldn't find a job unless he had some shoes to wear.

[A]

Debbie cannot find any shoes that fit Selby. Then he asks if she could help him with a medical prescription he had gotten out of the Tucson VA's office.

[B]

And he was sitting in the chair in my office, and I called Tucson, and then the lady at Tucson said, do you know who you have in your office? Oh, my God. She said, I have the U.S. marshal on the other line. She said, he is a rapist. And I said, you've got to be kidding.

[A]

U.S. marshals get on the phone with Debbie and tell her to stay calm, that help is on the way.

[B]

And I said, please hurry up and get here. I said, I don't know how much more I can have him to wait here. And the police said, well, just keep him there if you can. So then I went back across over there, and every time I would go in the waiting room, then I'd just, please, God, let me not blow this.

[C]

If this is the rapist, please just help me.

[A]

James Selby is one wanted in connection with nine violent sexual assaults in Arizona, California, Oklahoma, and Nevada. Local officers from Colorado Springs arrive at the VA office and take Selby into custody, not realizing the suspected rapist has already claimed one of their own as his latest victim. Cold Case Files is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Fiscally responsible financial geniuses, monetary magicians. These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds because Progressive offers discounts for paying in full, owning a home, and more. Plus, you can count on their great customer service to help you when you need it. So your dollar goes a long way. Visit progressive.com to see if you could save on car insurance. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states or situations.

[B]

At a news conference in Arizona, a big announcement.

[C]

The nationwide search for James Selby is over.

[B]

You know, I guess you would imagine a rapist to look very scary, intimidating, unattractive, grotesque. And he was just an average looking guy.

[A]

On September 24, James Allen Selby is apprehended in Colorado. News of the arrest reaches those who feared Selby the most. Victims of all ages.

[B]

I'm very happy they found him. I just want to be able to go on in life knowing that he's still out there and it's just not right. Suddenly the boogeyman that had been haunting me had a face and it was. He looked so normal.

[A]

Detectives from California, Arizona, Oklahoma and Nevada are lining up to talk to Selby. It is a local investigator from Colorado Springs, however, who will sit down with the suspected serial rapist.

[B]

I think a lot of police work is this kind of thing. You can put your nose to the grindstone but you just get that lucky break. And that was this.

[A]

As James Selby is being processed through the Colorado Springs Police Department, Detective Leslie Malik Madani catches wind of his arrest. A crime analyst in the sexual assault unit tells her that there is something familiar about Selby.

[B]

He hand wrote a little description of the guy and he goes, this sounds like our Brookside rapist.

[A]

More than a year earlier, the Brookside rapist attacked a 55 year old woman in her home, covering her face with a shirt. As he attacked from behind, he performed.

[B]

Oral sex on her first and then he had vaginal intercourse with her. What we ended up having was a stain on the shirt, a sperm stain that he had used to cover her face. There was a stain on the shirt and that was the only evidence we had.

[A]

Semen from the stain had produced a genetic profile but had never been matched to a suspect. Malik Madani puts in a call to Sandy.

[B]

When I was talking to the detectives, I was pretty keyed up that he was going to be my rapist. Just with the MO Similarities.

[A]

Two hours later, Malik Madani gets her chance to talk to Selby.

[B]

That was weird. It was in this little interview room in the jail and it was a locked door with just a tiny little window and a panic button.

[A]

Malik Madani sits down with Selby alone. Her approach is straightforward.

[B]

I just said, hey, you know, you're in custody for all these rapes all over the Western United States. I think you might be responsible for something here. Do you want to talk about it?

[A]

Selby agrees to talk and does so for roughly five hours. Precious little of the conversation, however, has to do with the unsolved rapes.

[B]

Selby would talk nonstop.

[C]

He.

[B]

He just talked. I mean, I barely asked him any questions. He was always in control. He was in control of what we talked about. If I ever tried to take him to a different subject, we went right back to what he wanted to talk about. It was never really an official interview. I was just having a conversation with him, hoping for the best.

[A]

Malik Madani's conversation fails to produce a confession. DNA, however, eventually links Selby to the Cholera Colorado Springs attack. And in July 2003, he is convicted of sexual assault in connection with the Brookside attack and sentenced to 20 years to life in prison. From Colorado, Selby is then transported to Tucson where he will stand trial for nine more counts of sexual assault and one charge of attempted murder.

[C]

Why do you think so many people.

[B]

In so many states for so many.

[C]

Cases, why are they focusing in on you? I'm pretty much antisocial, generally speaking. I hate people.

[A]

AJ Flick is a reporter with the Tucson Citizen newspaper. On April 15, she is granted an exclusive jailhouse interview with James Selby.

[B]

He said, AJ, I'll talk to. So. So we started, you know, we started talking to each other.

[C]

I'm really an easy target for him. I'm quiet, I'm passive. I don't like to get into people's business. I don't like to be the center of attention.

[A]

In her interview, Flick focuses on the question of why. What was it that turned James Selby into a suspected serial rapist?

[B]

I wanted to know what brought him.

[A]

To that point in his life that.

[B]

He could even be accused of that. And that's what I really tried to go after, to try to find out who he was and where he come from.

[C]

What made you change, though? Just being in war made you change. Seeing things you don't ever want to have to see, doing things you don't ever want to have to do. It's a cold feeling when you have to shoot someone that you don't know. You change your whole outlook on life.

[B]

He blamed the war a lot, the Gulf War. He was a Gulf War veteran and he was a decorated veteran too.

[A]

Selby served one year of active duty in the Gulf War and was honorably discharged on August 7, 1992. He raped his first victim seven years later.

[B]

I think he was definitely broken down. I don't know that he was so much making excuses. I think he really believed those things, and I think that's what made. Made him snap.

[A]

Flick also asks Selby about his pending trial and specifically Selby's intention to forego a public defender and defend himself.

[B]

Why do you feel that, you know.

[C]

Instead of having an attorney that you're working with, why is it so important to you to do it yourself? My feelings with public defenders are they are nothing more than an extension of the district attorney's office. You touch that furnace and appreciate you want, you learn not to touch it again.

[B]

What do you think the outcome's gonna.

[C]

Be, do you think?

[B]

Obviously you think you have a good chance of.

[C]

No, I don't. I don't think I have a good chance at all. I think that it's. There's so much media attention, there's no possible way that I'm gonna get a jury that is protected. James Selby is rolling the dice by.

[B]

Representing himself in court. But starting Tomorrow morning at 10:30, the the man notoriously known as the Midtown Rapist turns into the man representing the accused predator. It's a pretty small courtroom anyway, and he's going to give an opening statement to the jurors. So it was very much anticipated, and you had to get there very early, or else you didn't get a seat.

[A]

On September 28, opening statements begin. In Selby's trial.

[C]

I think he probably pictured himself as kind of a Hannibal Lecter kind of guy, as being a really smart, crafty criminal. His problem was he just wasn't that smart. It wasn't that he was stupid, but he just didn't have the kind of level of intelligence that he thought. DNA is so strong that it's almost impossible to argue that it is not me. In this case, we had the DNA, but the physical evidence of the abuse that this was was not consensual. Was so strong that there's no way that he could argue that this was a consensual act. So he had to go with the DNA wasn't me.

[A]

Selby's it wasn't me defense begins to fall apart when the first Tucson victim, Tiffany Nakajima, takes the stand.

[B]

He asked me if the person who had cut my throat was left or right handed. He asked me if his voice sounded familiar to me. I told him that it made me nauseous. Yes, his voice sounded familiar to me, and it made me nauseous.

[A]

After five days of representing himself, Selby turns his case back over to the public defender. Two weeks later, a jury finds Selby guilty. Then, on the day of his sentencing, Selby is found dead in his cell with a homemade noose around his neck. For at least one of his victims, the harsh end provides perhaps, a new beginning.

[B]

I don't feel cheated with his suicide at all. In some ways, it closes a big door for me because I don't have to think and wonder about what he's doing in jail, how he's being treated in jail, what he's thinking. Should I go and visit him? Should I write him a letter to try to learn more about him and understand why he did the things that he did?

[C]

This September, CBS hits are streaming free on Pluto tv. Coming in for this month only. Stream full episodes of Matlock.

[B]

I'm a lawyer. Like the old TV show Fire Country. Elsbeth I do love a mystery.

[C]

NCIS Origins, who Watson and Ghosts.

[A]

What the hell?

[C]

This is the most amazing sight I've never seen. All for free. The CBS shows you love this month only on Pluto tv.

[B]

Stream now. Pain never.