In the final of a series of predatory attacks, the Belmont Shore rapist, fleeing on his bicycle, was caught in a police dragnet six years in the making. He was quickly identified as Mark Rathbun, but then almost let go. Mark Rathbun was a polite and well-mannered sociopath who was finally brought to justice because he was riding a bicycle without a headlight, and by DNA evidence in police custody in two states.
Initial media and police reports of the Mark Rathbun arrest suggested that prior to capture his only contact with police was for "bad driving." There is in fact voluminous public documentation illustrating that Mark Rathbun was a dangerous sociopath unconscientiously trying to be stopped for years.
When Mark Rathbun wasn't in jail, on probation or in police custody, he frequently was the subject of bench warrants ordering his arrest for missing mandatory criminal court appearances. But fear of being in public places, prowling neighborhoods and being confronted by police are not deterrents to the sociopath, and neither did it deter Mark Rathbun. Always watching over his shoulder, Mark Rathbun often returned to his earlier crime scenes, or would attack two women within minutes leaving mixed DNA profiles behind for forensic investigation to unravel. On one occasion Mark Rathbun re-attacked an earlier victim several years later, and on another occasion he re-attacked another victim after just 17 days, leaving the same DNA calling card behind and dumbfounding detectives with his unusual criminal pathology.
This is the true story of Mark Rathbun, one of the most infamous serial predators in modern history, and the story of his DNA trail as told by the victims. This report looks at the friends and family members that helped and sheltered Mark Rathbun and were betrayed by him. It includes a review of the police detectives who sought Mark Rathbun, and the forensic detectives who were able to find new DNA evidence on an old bed sheet years after Mark Rathbun committed his first assaults. It also includes details about the two detectives who, armed with food and the words "DNA evidence" obtained a teary-eyed confession from Mark Rathbun.
This report also brings into focus details from the first police officer to suspect Mark Rathbun was the rapist, the odd coincidences the police officer had in connection to Mark Rathbun, and of the fellow police officer that discounted Mark Rathbun and wanted to release him after a field interview and a DNA swab.
This report discusses rape charges brought against an innocent Long Beach man whose physical description didn't match Mark Rathbun but who was nonetheless charged for rape because he left a light on to scare off burglars and had a lock on his door police couldn't compromise. It was a botched police investigation with no supporting DNA evidence, investigated by the same police detectives who subsequently brought Mark Rathbun to justice.
The rushed DNA analysis that quickly identified a rare DNA marker in the Mark Rathbun DNA profile is also examined, as well as the advancements in DNA technology over the intervening years since Mark Rathbun first attacked a woman in 1989. Finally, this report will review how modern police crime scene investigation, good police work by detectives, careful testimony on behalf of victims by detectives, DNA fingerprinting and expert witness testimony all merged over a three day period resulting in a 1,040 year prison sentence for Mark Rathbun.
NOTE:
This website is not affiliated with Mark Rathbun aka Marty Rathbun, nor the following websites:
Mark "Marty" Rathbun Squirrel
Mark Rathbun Story
Mark Rathbun Independent
