Remains believed to be Travis Decker, the 32-year-old father accused of murdering his three young daughters near a Washington campground, were located in a remote wooded area, according to the Chelan County Sheriff’s office.
The remains were found during a search south of Leavenworth, officials said.
“While positive identification has not yet been confirmed, preliminary findings suggest the remains belong to Travis Decker,” the sheriff’s office said Thursday evening.
The sheriff office said it had been in contact with the Decker family and is “providing them with support and updates as the investigation proceeds.”
“We are praying that the remains found are confirmed to be Travis’s. We continue to be grateful for law enforcement’s efforts in this case and are forever appreciative of the entire world’s love, compassion, and support for Whitney,” said Arianna Cozart, the attorney for Whitney Decker, Decker’s ex-wife and mother of the three girls killed.
Decker, an Army veteran, was wanted for three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of first-degree kidnapping, police said.
His daughters — Paityn Decker, 9; Evelyn Decker, 8; and Olivia Decker, 5 — had left home for a planned visitation with him on May 30, and never returned, officials said. Three days later, the girls were found dead near the Rock Island Campground in Chelan County, Washington, following a search, police said.
Decker’s truck was recovered at the scene but he was nowhere to be found, sparking a massive manhunt.
Hundreds of people from dozens of agencies and organizations were involved in the manhunt. Throughout the search efforts, multiple possible sightings of Decker were reported to officials, including two in Idaho — one on June 4 and another on July 5 — and one in Washington on Aug. 1, with all three proving to be unsuccessful or turning out to not be Decker.
Amid the search for Decker, authorities warned that he should be considered armed and dangerous.
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