More than a month after murder suspect Travis Decker vanished in Washington state, authorities are still searching — and the local sheriff now has a working theory on what might have happened.
Decker, a 32-year-old U.S. Army veteran, disappeared on May 30 after picking up his three daughters — Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5 — for a court-approved three-hour visitation in Wenatchee. When he failed to return them, their mother, Whitney Decker, contacted police, sparking a widespread search for the family.
Tragically, on June 2, the girls were found dead from asphyxiation near Decker’s abandoned pickup truck at Rock Island Campground. Decker was nowhere to be found. He is now wanted on charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping.
At the scene, investigators discovered blood matching Decker’s DNA on the tailgate of the truck, along with his wallet, cellphone, and husky dog, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said on July 1. Sheriff Mike Morrison told PEOPLE that the “fingerprint” of blood appears to have come from an injury, though the severity remains unclear.
As to whether Decker may still be alive, Morrison offered a grim but measured perspective:
“If he died, it may have been from a fall, or from an injury that became infected,” he said. “Or he could have drowned. There are certainly a lot of possibilities.”
If Decker is found deceased, Morrison said a full autopsy would be conducted to determine the exact cause of death.
Possible Sightings and Theories
There was a possible sighting of Decker by a hiker near Highway 97 around June 10, but since then, investigators have found no confirmed traces. Authorities have also expressed doubts that he is still in the area or alive.
A U.S. Marshals Service affidavit obtained by PEOPLE revealed that Decker had recently searched online for information about “how to relocate to Canada,” suggesting he may have considered fleeing on foot across the border. Investigators have emphasized that Decker, a trained military veteran, has survival skills that could allow him to evade detection.
Search teams have employed cadaver dogs and combed through mountainous terrain and nearby bodies of water, but so far, efforts have turned up nothing.
Sheriff Morrison also addressed concerns about how authorities might respond if they locate Decker.
“There have been some accusations that we’re out to harm him,” he said. “That’s just not how we operate in Washington state. If we find him alive and injured, we’ll ensure he receives proper medical care. If he’s deceased, we’ll thoroughly investigate to determine how he died.”
Grieving Mother Pleads for Closure
During a June 26 appearance on NewsNation’s Banfield, Whitney Decker’s attorney, Arianna Cozart, said the grieving mother simply wants answers.
“She hopes he’s found — dead or alive,” Cozart said. “It’s incredibly important to her to have that closure and some peace.”
