TEMPE, AZ — An accused serial rapist has now been indicted relating to crimes against six alleged victims, dating back to 2018, according to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.
On September 1, Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell announced 32-year-old James Estep was indicted by a grand jury on 30 felony counts that include crimes of sexual assault, kidnapping, aggravated assault, and theft.
On September 14, a Maricopa County judge ruled in court there was enough evidence to hold Estep without bond.
The indictment includes alleged crimes from Tempe, Mesa and Phoenix.
Read the full indictment below:
Tempe police arrested Estep on new charges of kidnapping and sexual assault on August 23. According to police documents, Estep is accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in his vehicle.
Mesa police have arrested Estep two other times this year. Estep was accused of raping at least five other women before his most recent arrest, according to search warrant records.
The Maricopa County Attorney's Office (MCAO) said it declined to file charges after his first arrest because “there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction.” The second time, MCAO dropped the sexual assault charges against Estep which allowed for his release in July. The case was sent back to the Mesa Police Department for further investigation.
County Attorney Rachel Mitchell defended her decision to dismiss the charges following Estep’s recent arrest. She said they didn’t have enough evidence to prove the case and was in direct communication with Mesa police about the ongoing investigation.
“We had concerns that we needed additional information. I agreed with those concerns,” Mitchell said. “We have one chance to get this right.”
ABC15 asked what changed that allowed prosecutors to refile sexual assault charges against Estep in the other cases. A spokesperson for the county attorney said they couldn’t comment because it’s an open case.
Former prosecutor and defense attorney Josh Kolsrud, who is familiar with the reports in the other cases, questioned back in July why the county attorney allowed Estep to be released. On Thursday, he again said he believed there was enough evidence including DNA from multiple victims.
“It’s ridiculous, how many more women need to be raped before the county attorney decides to do something in this case,” he said.
“These are horrible crimes, and my heart goes out to everybody involved in this, but that doesn’t change my ethical responsibilities,” Mitchell said.
In the most recent alleged assault, Tempe police say Estep took the girl’s phone and told the girl to get out of his car, allowing her to run away.
Police say the victim was offered a ride at a light rail platform and she got into the man’s vehicle because she was scared. She said she was reportedly strangled during the attack. She suffered obvious signs of injury to her face, eyes, neck, and head.
Evidence allegedly traced Estep to the locations and times given by the teenage victim.
Estep's next court date is in November and ABC15 will continue to follow this story.
