Authorities in Washington state say they may have located the remains of Travis Decker, the Army veteran accused of killing his three young daughters before disappearing into the Cascade Mountains, bringing a months-long manhunt closer to an end.
The Chelan County Sheriff's Office said Thursday that human remains were discovered in dense forest on Grindstone Mountain, a few miles from the remote campsite where 9-year-old Paityn, 8-year-old Evelyn and 5-year-old Olivia Decker were found dead in May. "While positive identification has not yet been confirmed, preliminary findings suggest the remains belong to Travis Decker," the sheriff's office said in a statement. DNA testing will be conducted to confirm the identity.
Sheriff Mike Morrison told local station KIRO-TV that clothing and "personal items" discovered near the remains matched what Decker was wearing when he was last seen. Search teams used drones, cadaver dogs and specialized equipment to locate the remains after months of combing rugged terrain.
Decker, 32, vanished on May 30 after failing to return his daughters following a scheduled custody visit. Three days later, the girls' bodies were found down an embankment near Rock Island Campground with plastic bags over their heads and wrists bound with zip ties, according to police affidavits.
Investigators recovered zip ties and bags near the scene bearing Decker's DNA, and a bloody fingerprint on his truck's tailgate. No other DNA profiles were detected, authorities said. Decker's abandoned truck was located about 100 yards from the campsite, along with his dog, which was later taken to a local shelter.
The killings shocked Wenatchee, Washington, where the children lived, and triggered a multiagency search involving local, state and federal teams. The search was complicated by difficult terrain and Decker's survival skills, as well as his three-day head start.
Decker's disappearance prompted national alerts, a $20,000 reward for information, and sightings reported in multiple states that turned out to be false leads. Earlier this month, the FBI tested bones discovered in a separate search area but determined they were not human.
