Investigators used a drone to find presumed remains of Travis Decker near Leavenworth, ending a three-month manhunt.
WENATCHEE, Wash. — New details are emerging about how investigators located the presumed remains of Travis Decker, ending the three-month manhunt for the alleged killer.
The Chelan County Sheriff’s Office told KING 5 that a drone helped lead searchers to the site south of Leavenworth where the remains, which included femur and feet bones, were found on Thursday. The aircraft captured images of a T-shirt known to have belonged to Decker. The site was less than a mile from the original scene, a remote area near Grindstone Mountain, according to the sheriff’s office.
“The drone work picked up some abnormalities in the images we had collected,” Sheriff Mike Morrison said. “We came back through, zoomed in on the abnormalities, and saw that it was consistent with a shirt we had seen Mr. Decker wear before.”
After the discovery, a law enforcement helicopter lowered a team of detectives into the rugged area, where they found personal items linked to Decker, including Army Ranger shorts, chewing tobacco and jewelry consistent with his history. A gun was not found in his possession.
“A good break,” Morrison said, though he emphasized that DNA testing must confirm the remains before the investigation is officially closed. At a press conference Friday evening, the sheriff said he did not want to rush the testing, which will be carried out by the Washington State Patrol. Another press conference is expected next week to announce the results.
Morrison said the area had not been previously searched. The remains were discovered in steep terrain nearly three-quarters of a mile from the original scene.
“This was off the beaten path. We were bushwhacking,” Morrison said. “It still took me over an hour to hike out once we got to that location.”
Gavin Duffy, chief deputy of the U.S. Marshals Service in the Eastern District of Washington, defended the scope of the manhunt in light of the discovery’s proximity to the crime scene.
“The terrain is extremely complex,” Duffy said. “It’s hard to find anyone in this country. It’s incredibly steep; it’s incredibly rocky.”
Morrison said he is optimistic the DNA results will confirm a match to Decker. At that point, the case will be effectively closed.
“They’ve identified the suspect. He’s been charged with three counts of homicide, three counts of kidnapping. They know who did it. They know where he is. That’s the end of it,” former King County Sheriff John Urquhart said.
Less than a day after the discovery, Decker’s pursuers called the find a high point of police work in one of Washington’s most rugged regions.
“This is closing out a very significant case in our county’s history,” Morrison said. “This was the largest manhunt in Chelan County history. This is the most horrendous homicide in Chelan County history, and we need to make sure it’s closed properly.”
Decker was charged earlier this summer with murder in the deaths of his daughters — Paityn, 9; Evelyn, 8; and Olivia, 5 — whose bodies were recovered June 2 after they were reported missing in late May.
A mother’s voice
Though Travis was the face of the manhunt, the heart of the story was the girls’ mother, Whitney Decker.
She spoke publicly only once, during a memorial service in late June. Her words offered the Wenatchee community a glimpse into the girls’ short but vibrant lives.
“They were incredible,” she said. “I truly hope that the legacy of the girls’ lives lives in everyone’s heart.”
After that, Whitney’s voice would only come through her attorney, raising questions about why an AMBER Alert was never issued after the girls went missing.
Authorities said the alert criteria were not met, because there was no evidence the children were in immediate danger of bodily harm or death. Instead, the Washington State Patrol issued an Endangered Missing Persons Advisory, which sometimes does not push emergency text alerts to cellphones.
Whitney’s attorney, Arianna Cozart, argued that officers recognized the danger posed by Travis Decker’s declining mental state, his failure to return the girls after a visitation, and his refusal to answer his phone. Police, however, could not persuade WSP to issue an AMBER Alert.
Signs of unraveling
In July, KING 5 obtained body camera footage showing Decker in an agitated state during a routine police encounter after a minor traffic collision. He repeatedly asked if he was going to jail, despite the low-level nature of the incident.
The man involved in the crash told KING 5 that Decker appeared to be unraveling.
That report would be the last major development until Thursday’s discovery. By the end of July, Chelan County had scaled back its search efforts, handing the lead role to the U.S. Marshals Service. Tips grew sporadic, and alleged sightings led nowhere. Deployed National Guard resources were called off, and formerly closed areas reopened.
Search ends near where it began
In the end, Decker may have died less than 1 mile from where his daughters’ bodies were found — near Rock Creek Campground outside Leavenworth, off Icicle Road.
That site remained a focus of the search for months. In August, FBI agents closed the campground to investigate but found only animal remains.
Decker’s truck was discovered nearby, fueling speculation that others may have been involved in the killings. But DNA testing showed only his profile, ruling out other suspects.
Details still unresolved
The discovery of remains may finally close one chapter of the manhunt. But questions linger about the decisions made in the hours before the girls’ deaths and whether the system failed to protect them.
Editor’s note: The video below was published on June 9, one week after the search for Travis Decker began. It reflects known information at the time, comprehensive details about the state of the manhunt during its early days.
KING 5’s Alex McLoon conducted the interview with Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison for this article.