The remains were found in a remote wooded area south of Leavenworth during a search involving multiple agencies. Decker has been wanted since June.
LEAVENWORTH, Wash. — Authorities from the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office suspect they have discovered the body of Travis Decker, who faced accusations of murdering and kidnapping his three daughters, Paityn, Evelyn, and Olivia.
The remains were found in a remote wooded area south of Leavenworth during a search involving multiple agencies.
“Although we are still awaiting positive identification, initial evidence indicates the remains are likely those of Travis Decker,” stated the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office is processing the scene with the help of the Washington State Patrol crime scene response team. DNA analysis will be done after.
The search for Travis Decker commenced after he did not return his daughters as per a scheduled visit according to a parenting agreement on Friday, May 30. On that evening, the Wenatchee Police Department handled a Civil Complaint filed by the girls’ mother.
Following further investigation, authorities issued an Endangered Missing Person Alert on Saturday, May 31, urging the public to look out for the Deckers.
On Monday, June 2, specific leads prompted the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office to focus their search around the Icicle Road vicinity near Leavenworth. Deputies discovered Decker’s parked truck close to the Rock Island Campground, located roughly 17 miles west of Leavenworth. The vehicle had no occupants.
Officials conducted a thorough search of the adjacent area and subsequently found the three Decker children deceased. The Chelan County medical examiner identified suffocation as the official cause of death for the girls.
Authorities closed a network of hiking trails in the northern Cascades, identifying the Pacific Crest Trail as a prime area of interest.Â
Officials also urged residents and cabin owners in remote parts of Chelan, Kittitas, King, Snohomish and Okanogan counties to take extra precautions while Decker was on the loose.
Investigators described Travis Decker as highly skilled in wilderness survival. Decker was an infantryman in the Army from March 2013 to July 2021 and deployed to Afghanistan for four months in 2014, according to Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Ruth Castro. From 2014 to 2016, he was an automatic rifleman with the 75th Ranger Regiment at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington.
By June 6, more than 100 law enforcement officers were searching for Decker as Gov. Bob Ferguson authorized the deployment of Washington National Guard resources.
On the night of Monday, June 9, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office asked people in the area to be on alert as they believed Decker could be in the Ingalls Creek area west of Wenatchee.
The search continued through the summer, including a law enforcement search near the campground in the area where the girls’ bodies were originally found.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
