Suspect in Sidney child enticement case free from jail while investigation continues

SIDNEY - A Sidney man accused of child enticement is free from jail after charges against him were declined. 

Jamie Daniels was accused of sending messages to an 18-year-old female, pretending to be an 8-year-old, with a group that calls themselves "Predator Poachers." Daniels expressed interest in meeting the person to engage in sexual acts. 

Group members drove from Houston, Texas to the southern Nebraska panhandle to confront Daniels at his Sidney apartment. They posted a 45-minute video of the meeting on Youtube.

Daniels was arrested on Dec. 2, but released the next day after a charge for child enticement was declined. 

"Crimes involving child enticement require the victim be underage (16-years-old or younger when an electronic device is used)," Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub said. "There's an exception when a law enforcement officer portrays to be the underage participant, but there's no exception where a non-law enforcement officer portrays to be the participant."

The matter remains under investigation while electronic devices are being forensically analyzed.