The FBI embarked on a two-day search on Monday through challenging and forested areas in Washington state, aiming to uncover information on the disappearance of Travis Decker, almost three months after he presumably murdered his three young daughters.
Authorities remain uncertain about Decker’s current status, whether alive or dead, according to Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison and Peter Orth, the FBI’s supervisory senior resident agent in Yakima, during a Monday press briefing.
“You can’t be too thorough in a search like this,” Orth stated. “The vegetation is so dense that someone could be just 10 meters off the path, completely unnoticed.”
Decker, previously a military survivalist by training, has been sought after since June 2, following the discovery of his daughters’ bodies – Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5 – at Rock Island Campground in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.
Morrison said that if Decker is still alive in the wilderness, he believes he must be “pretty tired by now.”
“He’s got to be perfect every single day; we just have to be perfect once,” Morrison said.
About 100 FBI agents and other law enforcement launched a two-day search for Travis Decker on Monday, authorities said. (FBI via AP)
Last week, officials affirmed Decker as the only suspect in the suspected homicides, reporting that his DNA was located at the crime scene with no other DNA profiles discovered.
“If it’s not me wearing this uniform, it’ll be another Chelan County Sheriff … We will find him, in one fashion or another,” Morrison said.
The U.S. Marshals Service is offering a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to Decker’s capture.
