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CNN Saturday Morning News
Pennsylvania Police Search For Escaped Murder Suspect
Aired October 11, 2003 - 7:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Pennsylvania are searching for a murder suspect, who escaped from his jail cell last night. Hugo Selenski is a suspect in the murders of five people, whose bodies were found buried in his backyard. For the very latest, we go to Wilkes- Barre, Pennsylvania, and Andy Mehalshick of CNN affiliate WBRE. Now, Andy, I understand that there were actually two suspects who escaped and one has been caught. Is that correct?
ANDY MEHALSHICK, WBRE CORRESPONDENT: Andrea, quite a bizarre story. In fact, the second inmate that got out last night from the seventh floor here in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, actually fell about 40 feet and suffered severe injuries. Otherwise, he would have gotten away as well.
The man you mentioned, Hugo Selenski, the accused killer, he got away. He's still on the run.
Let me show you some search video from last night. This began just before 10 p.m. Eastern time, again, here in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. We're about 150 miles north of Philadelphia.
Hugo Selenski and his cellmate, 39-year-old Scott Bolton (ph), who is described as a master con man, smashed a seventh-floor window here at the prison, and began to scale down bed sheets tied together. About halfway down, Scott Bolton (ph) fell, and again, suffered very serious injuries.
However, Hugo Selenski had a mattress he threw out of the window first. He used that mattress, threw it over the barbed wire and escaped from this prison.
Now, the caveat to this story is, just on Monday, Andrea, Hugo Selenski was arrested and charged in connection with two murders. They found five bodies on his property, about five miles away from here, in a place called Kingston Township (UNINTELLIGIBLE). He's expected to be charged with as many as three more, and the search continues for even more bodies here in this part of Pennsylvania.
Selenski, sources told me inside this prison, told me earlier this week, that Selenski made the comment, "there's no way in heck this prison can keep me inside." That was as of Tuesday or Wednesday, and lo and behold, Friday night, Andrea, he made a break from his prison.
Now, let me show you very quickly if we can, my videographer, Walt Lansberry (ph), will zoom up to where the sheets are tired together. It's kind of foggy here in this part of Pennsylvania this morning, but those sheets tied together, that's about 75 feet above the ground. The window you see the light in, they smashed it out, knocked the bars off the window, and scaled down the window.
Now, what happened was, a guard inside the prison, Andrea, heard a commotion. I'm told he looked out the window and saw two people like the old "Batman & Robin" series scaling down the window. Well, Bolton (ph), again, fell about 30, 40 feet, but Hugo Selenski, a real wild man, he's described as, got away. He's been on the loose all night long, and local police have been searching rivers, neighborhoods. And they put a warning out for people in this part of northeastern Pennsylvania -- don't fool around with Hugo Selenski. If you spot this man, call 911 or the Wilkes-Barre City Police Department, again, here in northeastern Pennsylvania. Hugo Selenski considered dangerous, and by this point, considering how sly he is, he may even be armed.
KOPPEL: Andy, it's incredible, you said it's like "Batman & Robin," it's like something from one of those prison escape movies, to see the sheets hanging down there, still outside the jail. Andy Mehalshick, thank you so much, joining us from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 11, 2003 - 7:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Pennsylvania are searching for a murder suspect, who escaped from his jail cell last night. Hugo Selenski is a suspect in the murders of five people, whose bodies were found buried in his backyard. For the very latest, we go to Wilkes- Barre, Pennsylvania, and Andy Mehalshick of CNN affiliate WBRE. Now, Andy, I understand that there were actually two suspects who escaped and one has been caught. Is that correct?
ANDY MEHALSHICK, WBRE CORRESPONDENT: Andrea, quite a bizarre story. In fact, the second inmate that got out last night from the seventh floor here in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, actually fell about 40 feet and suffered severe injuries. Otherwise, he would have gotten away as well.
The man you mentioned, Hugo Selenski, the accused killer, he got away. He's still on the run.
Let me show you some search video from last night. This began just before 10 p.m. Eastern time, again, here in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. We're about 150 miles north of Philadelphia.
Hugo Selenski and his cellmate, 39-year-old Scott Bolton (ph), who is described as a master con man, smashed a seventh-floor window here at the prison, and began to scale down bed sheets tied together. About halfway down, Scott Bolton (ph) fell, and again, suffered very serious injuries.
However, Hugo Selenski had a mattress he threw out of the window first. He used that mattress, threw it over the barbed wire and escaped from this prison.
Now, the caveat to this story is, just on Monday, Andrea, Hugo Selenski was arrested and charged in connection with two murders. They found five bodies on his property, about five miles away from here, in a place called Kingston Township (UNINTELLIGIBLE). He's expected to be charged with as many as three more, and the search continues for even more bodies here in this part of Pennsylvania.
Selenski, sources told me inside this prison, told me earlier this week, that Selenski made the comment, "there's no way in heck this prison can keep me inside." That was as of Tuesday or Wednesday, and lo and behold, Friday night, Andrea, he made a break from his prison.
Now, let me show you very quickly if we can, my videographer, Walt Lansberry (ph), will zoom up to where the sheets are tired together. It's kind of foggy here in this part of Pennsylvania this morning, but those sheets tied together, that's about 75 feet above the ground. The window you see the light in, they smashed it out, knocked the bars off the window, and scaled down the window.
Now, what happened was, a guard inside the prison, Andrea, heard a commotion. I'm told he looked out the window and saw two people like the old "Batman & Robin" series scaling down the window. Well, Bolton (ph), again, fell about 30, 40 feet, but Hugo Selenski, a real wild man, he's described as, got away. He's been on the loose all night long, and local police have been searching rivers, neighborhoods. And they put a warning out for people in this part of northeastern Pennsylvania -- don't fool around with Hugo Selenski. If you spot this man, call 911 or the Wilkes-Barre City Police Department, again, here in northeastern Pennsylvania. Hugo Selenski considered dangerous, and by this point, considering how sly he is, he may even be armed.
KOPPEL: Andy, it's incredible, you said it's like "Batman & Robin," it's like something from one of those prison escape movies, to see the sheets hanging down there, still outside the jail. Andy Mehalshick, thank you so much, joining us from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
