SEARCY — 31 year-old Daniel Selby reportedly lit himself on fire before jumping over a cliff on Monday. According to court documents, Selby was scheduled to go to trial in January on a charge of rape involving a juvenile.
The White County Sheriff’s Office responded to Riverside Park in White County on Monday after “someone could be heard calling for help in the area below the cliffs,” Lt. Scott Seiders told the White County Citizen.
The Searcy Fire Department was also called to the scene for a “high-angle rescue and extraction by water.” Seiders said he ran along the base of the cliffs until he reached the man, identified as 31-year-old Daniel Selby.
Selby was said to have been “conscious and alert" when discovered but with a visibly broken leg, various impact injuries, and second-and third-degree burns over much of his upper body.
Seiders said Selby told him that he lit himself on fire with lighter fluid prior to going over the cliff edge. Selby was was transported by ambulance to a local hospital.
Selby was charged in a March 2023 rape involving a juvenile. His jury trial was scheduled to begin on Jan. 13, 2025, but Seiders said i
