HAY RIVER - A Deline man wanted by police after being accidentally released from jail has apparently found time to keep in touch with friends on a social networking website.

A webpage in the name of Darren Kenny is located on a website called Bebo.

It is believed to be the same Darren Lee Kenny released by mistake more than three months ago from the South Mackenzie Correctional Centre (SMCC) in Hay River.

In one message to a friend on Bebo eight weeks ago, Kenny wrote that he was "just chilling out" in Deline, and provided a telephone number where he could be reached.

Kenny was released on Aug. 18.

However, the release did not come to light until Nov. 5 when Fort Smith RCMP contacted the SMCC about travel arrangements to bring Kenny to a Nov. 16 trial.

Kenny, 27, was on remand awaiting a Supreme Court trial on charges of sexual assault and breach of probation.

Sgt. Grant Payne of the Fort Smith RCMP said the police have been looking into the website lead since Nov. 20. "We are aware of it and we are following up on that," Payne said.

However, the sergeant said the best tips about Kenny's possible whereabouts are coming from individuals.

"We continue to get some tips through Crime Stoppers," he said.

Social networking websites can't be checked at RCMP detachments because of computer security concerns.

"We're limited to what we can access on the Internet," Payne said. However, he said the RCMP has a section in Yellowknife that will search the Internet at a detachment's request.

Sgt. Wayne Norris, the media relations officer with the RCMP's G Division, said the force's policy is that members cannot access social networking sites using RCMP computers.

However, Norris confirmed detachment investigators can request that such sites be checked.

"These resources are made available to our investigators in an official investigation," he said.

The current system doesn't inhibit the capabilities of investigators, he said. "That by no means restricts us from being thorough and complete."

While the RCMP saw Kenny in Deline after his release - before it was known to have been accidental - it is believed he is no longer in that community.

Nor is there any indication he is in the Fort Smith area.

The sexual assault charge is related to an incident in Fort Smith on Oct. 9, 2008.

The Department of Justice determined the accidental release was the result of ambiguity in a warrant on file at SMCC.

The warrant listed a number of charges. Some had been dealt with by a court and the inmate was eligible to be released on those matters, but not on other charges listed on the warrant.

The department issued a directive to all correctional facilities that, should staff members now find any ambiguity in an inmate's records, they must verify the information with the clerk of the court.

According to a description from the RCMP, Kenny is aboriginal, 183 cm (six feet) tall, weighs 72 kg (159 pounds), and has black hair and brown eyes.