Dewayne Lee Selby
Selby, circa 2021; Jack Grimes
- Missing Since 10/22/2021
- Missing From Tulsa County, Oklahoma
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Sex Male
- Race White
- Age 59 years old
- Height and Weight 5'9 - 5'11, 140 - 156 pounds
- Associated Vehicle(s) Maroon four-door 2001 Ford Taurus with Oklahoma license plate number ETW-614 (accounted for)
- Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, blue eyes.
Details of Disappearance
Selby was last seen in Turley, Oklahoma on October 22, 2021. He and his longtime friend, roommate and business partner, 76-year-old Jack Grimes, planned to attend a horse show in the Dallas-Forth Worth area of Texas, a four-and-a-half-hour drive to the south, and buy a horse. A photo of Grimes is posted with this case summary.
The men were driving a maroon four-door 2001 Ford Taurus with Oklahoma license plate number ETW-614. They never made it to the horse show and there's no evidence they left the local area at all; both men disappeared. They left behind fourteen horses and two or three dogs. Selby has never been heard from again.
His mother, Glenda "Cookie" Parton, who lived with her daughter and son-in-law about an hour from Turley, decided to report her son missing on October 25. The police said they needed his Social Security number, so she decided to drive to Selby's home in Turley to get his Social Security card.
She is known to have arrived at Selby and Grimes's house; a relative who lived within sight of the house saw her car in the driveway.
She last seen at 8:00 p.m. that day at a Reasor's store in Owasso, Oklahoma; she had given a ride to one of Grimes and Selby's ranch hands. They purchased food, which was later found in Grimes and Selby's refrigerator. She was behaving normally in the store and didn't appear to be under duress.
Parton's daughter stated it seemed strange that her mother would have given the person a ride to the store, since Parton did not drive after dark due to her eyesight. She has never been heard from again.
On October 26, when Parton didn't return home from what should have been a two-hour round trip to Turley, her daughter and son-in-law went looking for her. They found her car, a red Kia Rio, parked on the side of the highway, with the key in the ignition. There was no sign of Parton at the scene.
Parton's daughter stated her mother never used the ignition key. Although her car was normally messy and full of various items, it was clean and neat when her family members found it. The can of pepper spray which she always kept attached to her purse was sitting on the car seat.
Selby's car was found abandoned on Highway 75 near 56th Street North after he disappeared, and Grimes's car was found in Mohawk Park on October 25. On October 31, Grimes's body was found by deer hunters near 59th Place North and North Xanthus, less than a mile from his and Selby's home. He had been murdered. No one has been arrested in his case and no suspects have been named.
Parton's daughter-in-law stated Grimes had a reputation for helping others, including homeless people and those struggling with addiction, but it's unclear whether this was a factor in his disappearance and murder.
In November 2022, police announced they had a person of interest in Parton and Selby's disappearances. This person has not been publicly identified, but authorities stated there was no evidence that either of them was still alive. The mother and son's disappearances, and the murder of Grimes, remain unsolved.
Investigating Agency
- Tulsa County Sheriff's Office 918-596-5601
Source Information
Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated November 11, 2022; casefile added.