Joe Clyde Daniels case: Search of Daniels property enters day 3

TENNESSEE CITY, Tenn. (WTVF) — As of Saturday morning, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation special agents are back out at the home on Garners Creek Road in Dickson County. One big question is what led authorities back to this property, which has been searched before?

That part of the search warrant is under seal, so details of the tip that prompted the search are not public.

The 2.6-acre property is where five-year-old Joe Clyde Daniels disappeared back on April 4, 2018. His remains have never been found.

The TBI served a warrant on Thursday and agents have been clearing brush and digging holes on the property looking for the child’s remains.

This morning I spoke with Joe Daniels — Joe Clyde’s grandfather — who still lives with his wife in the home on the property. He is a long-haul truck driver and both he and his wife, Belle, were on the road when their grandson disappeared in 2018. Neither is a suspect.

But their son, Joseph, is charged with homicide and the mother, Krystal, is charged with aggravated child neglect.

Joe Daniels tells me bad storms in the area a few weeks back took down some trees in his yard, so he and a cousin went out with chainsaws to remove the debris. It is his belief that someone saw them out moving things around on the property and reported it as suspicious activity.

He thinks that is why the TBI is searching the property.

If that’s all it is, a legal expert source tells me that seems like a thin probable cause to get a warrant. Of course, there certainly could be more to it than just that.

But Joe Daniels says the special agents are welcome to look and doesn’t mind they are removing brush he was going to remove anyway. They also continue to dig holes and sift through soil, looking for bone fragments or other evidence.

Joe Daniels says he has no idea where to find Joe Clyde’s remains, but he doubts it is on property that has already been thoroughly searched. My understanding is that the search effort could continue until next week.