62-year-old Wayne Arthur Silsbee walked into the Oregon City Police Department and turned himself in on Friday. He was wanted for his alleged involvement in multiple incidents of sexual assault involving several female victims who were between the ages of eight and ten at the time of the offenses.
The alleged assaults occurred between September of 1995 and April of 1996, in Clackamas County. Silsbee was acquainted with each of the minor victims, having either babysat for them or taken them to various events. Silsbee faces charges of first degree sodomy, first degree sexual abuse, endangering the welfare of a minor, and first degree unlawful sexual penetration in a local arrest warrant obtained in Clackamas County, Oregon, on July 24, 1996. The FBI obtained a federal arrest warrant charging him with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution that was issued on September 19, 1996, in the United States District Court, District of Oregon, Portland, Oregon.
Silsbee's first appearance will be on Monday.
Authorities are asking for anyone who has had any contact with Silsbee over the last 23 years to call the Oregon City tip line: 503-496-1616. Detectives believe he most recently lived in Nebraska. Silsbee also has had ties to Springfield, Missouri; the San Francisco Bay area of California; Colorado; Arizona; and northwestern Washington State.
The Fugitive Felon Act, used to obtain an unlawful flight to avoid prosecution warrant, allows the use of federal resources to support the location and apprehension of fugitives from state justice. Federal authorities will likely dismiss the federal fugitive charge when state prosecution on the underlying substantive charges proceeds.