A North Platte man is in jail on felony enticement charges after he allegedly tried to lure a young girl into his home.
On October 19, an officer from the North Platte Police Department met with several individuals regarding a possible child enticement case.
It was reported that a 10-year-old female and a 12-year-old male were walking home from school in the 2200 block of West 15th Street when a male subject standing in the doorway of a home tried to lure the girl into his house.
The man, later identified as Terry Yonker, allegedly asked the girl several times to “come over here,” and told her that he would give her money if she did something for him. Police say Yonker did not tell the girl what she had to do to get the money.
Police learned that Yonker had attempted to lure the girl into his home on several previous occasions as well.
On Tuesday, officers met with Yonker and placed him under arrest for felony child enticement.
Authorities say more charges may be filed as other have come forward making similar allegations against Yonker.
The investigation is ongoing.
Yonker is a registered sex offender due to a conviction for attempted first-degree sexual assault in Lincoln County in 2005 (View Yonker on the Registry here).
Here is the Nebraska Statute for child enticement:
28-311. Criminal child enticement; attempt; penalties.
(1)(a) No person, by any means and without privilege to do so, shall knowingly solicit, coax, entice, or lure or attempt to solicit, coax, entice, or lure any child under the age of fourteen years to enter into any vehicle, whether or not the person knows the age of the child.
(b) No person, by any means and without privilege to do so, shall solicit, coax, entice, or lure or attempt to solicit, coax, entice, or lure any child under the age of fourteen years to enter into any place with the intent to seclude the child from his or her parent, guardian, or other legal custodian or the general public, whether or not the person knows the age of the child. For purposes of this subdivision, seclude means to take, remove, hide, secrete, conceal, isolate, or otherwise unlawfully separate.
(2) It is an affirmative defense to a charge under this section that:
(a) The person had the express or implied permission of the parent, guardian, or other legal custodian of the child in undertaking the activity;
(b)(i) The person is a law enforcement officer, emergency services provider as defined in section 71-507, firefighter, or other person who regularly provides emergency services, is the operator of a bookmobile or other such vehicle operated by the state or a political subdivision and used for informing, educating, organizing, or transporting children, is a paid employee of, or a volunteer for, a nonprofit or religious organization which provides activities for children, or is an employee or agent of or a volunteer acting under the direction of any board of education and (ii) the person listed in subdivision (2)(b)(i) of this section was, at the time the person undertook the activity, acting within the scope of his or her lawful duties in that capacity; or
(c) The person undertook the activity in response to a bona fide emergency situation or the person undertook the activity in response to a reasonable belief that it was necessary to preserve the health, safety, or welfare of the child.
(3) Any person who violates this section commits criminal child enticement and is guilty of a Class IIIA felony. If such person has previously been convicted of (a) criminal child enticement under this section, (b) sexual assault of a child in the first degree under section 28-319.01, (c) sexual assault of a child in the second or third degree under section 28-320.01, (d) child enticement by means of an electronic communication device under section 28-320.02, or (e) assault under section 28-308, 28-309, or 28-310, kidnapping under section 28-313, or false imprisonment under section28-314 or 28-315 when the victim was under eighteen years of age when such person violates this section, such person is guilty of a Class IIA felony