Officials expect Travis Decker, father suspected of killing his three children, to make a mistake that will lead to capture
WENATCHEE – Through trees, trails, rocks and mountains, agencies in and out of Chelan County have descended on the area surrounding Blewett Pass in the Cascade Mountains as they try to capture a man suspected of suffocating his three children in a remote campground.
They’re waiting for him to tire and make a mistake.
“You got to be perfect every single day, Travis,” Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison said in a news conference Wednesday. “We only have to be perfect one day.”
Travis Decker, the 32-year-old former military member, is charged with kidnapping and aggravated first-degree murder in the deaths of his three daughters, Olivia Decker, 5; Evelyn Decker, 8; and Paityn Decker, 9, from Wenatchee. The girls were found zip-tied and asphyxiated with plastic bags in an embankment at the Rock Island Campground near Leavenworth, according to previous reporting from The Spokesman-Review.
The siblings were spending time with their father during a custodial visit.
When they weren’t back home with their mother the night of May 30, authorities were alerted. They tracked Decker’s truck on June 1 to the campground near the end of Icicle Creek Road and found the girls’ bodies more than 70 yards away down an embankment, court records state.
Bags and zip ties were also strewn throughout the campsite, and bloody handprints were found on the truck, according to the documents. Police found personal items at the campsite, like blankets, car seats, food, a cooler and a wallet.
Law enforcement then launched a massive manhunt, believing that Decker slipped into the mountains on foot from the campsite.
Decker is considered an experienced survivalist able to spend days, perhaps weeks, in the forest. The area is remote and rugged and includes the Enchantments, one of the state’s premier and popular backpacking destinations. It is not accessible by road, so authorities are working with rough terrain to try and locate Decker, Morrison told reporters.
Law enforcement said Wednesday it is boxing Decker in. The amount of resources and the widespread activity throughout the forests of central Washington signals to Morrison authorities will, he hopes, bring Decker in alive.
“We believe that we’re closing in on his trail,” Morrison said. “… There is nowhere he will be able to go where we don’t have units waiting for him.”
As of Tuesday, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a news release a group of hikers spotted a solo hiker in the area that appeared to be ill-prepared and was avoiding others. When tracking teams spotted the hiker from a helicopter flying near Colchuck Lake, the person ran from sight as the aircraft passed. Morrison said agencies feel confident the lone hiker was Decker.
“Tracking teams believe they are on Decker’s trail,” the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office Facebook post said. “… Community support and tips are still needed!”
Law enforcement immediately tracked the trail to the area of the Ingalls Creek trailhead off Highway 97, according to the release. The National Guard, U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Marshal’s Service, U.S. Forest Service, the FBI and multiple nearby counties have spread out throughout the forest around Highway 97 using drones, ATVs and trucks to box in the suspected killer.
All day Wednesday police vehicles drove up and down Highway 97 between Cle Elem and Leavenworth. The National Guard, called in to help with the search and authorized by Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, was set up at 97 Rock House, a coffee shop and store in Peshastin. An automated sign positioned above the road reads, “Do not pick up hitchhikers.”
Farther south, Kittitas County vehicles and empty trailers parked alongside shoulders and forest service roads. Just beyond the highway stood a sign with Decker’s face plastered at the bottom: “WANTED: USMS REWARD: Up to $20,000.”
The scenic route weaves through the Wenatchee mountains, dotted with Douglas fir trees and purple lupine wildflowers. Aside from the sounds of passing cars , the Blewett Pass area was quiet with only the sound of chirping birds.
Crews originally searching the area around Ingalls Creek had moved farther south from the day before. Crews were observed closer to Cle Elum, in what Morrison referred to as a “different direction.”
Morrison would not specify how – but claimed the investigation has “evolved and matured,” leading to a change in the type of approach within the deep forests near Leavenworth.
“Our tactics have still continued,” he said. “We still have a ground team there. We have dogs out there that are tracking leads, we’re going through sightings, we’re also doing trackings of what we have found with footprints. Nothing has changed from yesterday – we’ve just started to head in a different direction.”
Law enforcement has used the rapidly advancing manhunt program, or “RAM,” a U.S. Marshals program that can immediately call in technology, intelligence sharing and collaboration between agencies to work together to capture fugitives. The program was most notability used during a drive-by shooting in Moses Lake. So far, they’ve found a few items strewn in the terrain they believe “are of interest.”
If officials do find Decker, they plan to attempt to de-escalate the situation to bring him in alive – the same way they arrest anyone else, Morrison said.
“Our intent is not to hurt or injure him. It is to bring him to justice and make sure he’s in good shape so he can face trial,” he told the media. “Mr. Decker is going to be able to dictate how this ends. We’ve encouraged him time and time again to give up, do so peacefully. That’s what we’re aiming for.”
So far, Morrison said, Kittitas County, King County, Snohomish County, Okanogan County, Douglas County, Grant County and Spokane County have all been in contact with the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office helping to track Decker. The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office has supplied Chelan with helicopters for infrared cameras to track movement at night, when the temperatures are cooler.
Meanwhile, agencies from Canada, Australia and as far as Portugal have also made contact, the sheriff said, either willing to help or share pictures of Decker with the public.
“He is surrounded. Washington state knows who he is,” Morrison said. “We’re going to continue to be in there. He’s got a lot of ground to cover. Eventually, he’s going to tire and make a mistake.”
Chelan County has had to switch out agencies multiple times due to exhaustion. It requires rest, the county posted in a news release, so federal agents must step in when needed. The alleged crime is so heinous, that in 27 years of law enforcement, Ryan Moody, chief of special operations for the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office, has never encountered one of this scale.
Organizing the logistics of various federal, state and county agencies in the search has been hard, he said. The relentless searching his officers are subject to has been even harder.
“Literally, all they do is come in, they work, they go home to sleep and come right back in,” Moody said. “So to do that for almost two weeks now, it’s been pretty taxing.”
Because agencies across the Pacific Northwest are scoping the forests, Morrison believes Decker must aim for “perfection” when trying to evade arrest. One mistake could land him in the hands of police.
“He’s not going to be able to make a mistake, because all we need is one mistake and one day to go in our favor, and he’s going to be in our custody,” Morrison said. “So I hope he’s watching. I hope he knows that we haven’t given up.”
No motive yet
Morrison told reporters Wednesday that he doesn’t know if the possible motive of Decker’s alleged actions “would even matter” – the sheriff’s office has focused a major part of their resources on working with the prosecutor’s office to establish a case, he said, but as far as he’s concerned, “three young girls have been killed.”
“I don’t think the motive is going to matter,” he said Wednesday.
Decker, according to court documents, was divorced from his wife for several years with a parenting plan that limited his visits to every other weekend with no overnight stays because he had recently lost housing. The only exception was trips with a preplanned agenda and extra clothes, court records say.
At the end the couple’s seven-year marriage, Decker was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder for which he does not take medication, according to court documents. He was supposed to seek mental health and anger management treatment, but hasn’t.
Court documents state that on May 26, Decker made multiple internet searches on how to move to Canada, including “how to relocate to Canada” and “jobs Canada”.
Around the time the girls disappeared, Decker’s ex-wife noted he was more quiet than usual, while his wages were being garnished for child support. He had been talking about getting rid of his dog over financial concerns, according to court records. Overnight camping trips were allowed only with clear details of plans and extra clothing, but the children left home with only the clothes on their back.
When Decker didn’t return at his scheduled time, ex-wife Whitney Decker began calling him but believed his phone was turned off.
It was something he had never done before, she told police. He has never failed to return the children, and overall, the children and their father have a good relationship, she said in court records.
The death of the children sent a shock wave to everyone – the city of Leavenworth lowered its flags to half-staff in remembrance of the children, and the school district in Wenatchee notified its staff of the children’s deaths “with a heavy heart.”
Amy Edwards, a friend of Whitney’s, created a GoFundMe fundraiser to support the final expenses and legal costs brought by the death of Decker sisters. As of Wednesday, donations to the campaign have exceeded more than $1.2 million.
“I’ve known Whitney for years, we’re both dance moms and theater friends,” Edwards wrote in the GoFundMe post. “We’ve spent this year as dance moms together, with my daughter Maisy and Whitney’s daughter Evelyn both performing on the Fabulous Feet Dance Rockstars team.”
In an update to the post, Edwards expressed gratitude for the donations, saying their support “continues to lift Whitney and her family during an unimaginably difficult time.”
The Chelan County Sheriff’s Office, and other agencies, are driven by justice for the girls, Morrison said Wednesday.
“… For Paityn, Evelyn and Olivia, their memories continue to motivate us, continue to inspire our agency to seek justice and be their voice,” he said. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to their family. We continue to keep in communication with them and make sure that we remind them we have not given up.”
Decker was last seen wearing a light-colored shirt with dark shorts, has black hair and brown eyes, is 5-foot-8 and weighs about 190 pounds. He may pose a risk if he is approached, police said in a release. If found, call 911 immediately.