Left: Travis Decker (Chelan County Sheriff”s Office). Right: (from left to right) Evelyn, Paityn, and Olivia Decker (Facebook).
Authorities in Washington state said that blood found near the location of three sisters’ bodies matches their father’s DNA.
In a press release posted to Facebook on Tuesday, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office announced that the bloody handprint found on the truck belonging to 32-year-old Travis Decker was his blood. More blood found at the same scene — not far from where 9-year-old Paityn, 8-year-old Evelyn, and 5-year-old Olivia were found dead on June 2 — also matched Decker, leading police to state “that we do not have any reason to believe there are any other suspects” in the girls’ homicides.
The Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said that the items taken from Decker’s truck were tested for DNA. Blood was found on the tailgate of the truck and reportedly on other pieces of evidence found at the scene where the truck was located. Police stated, “We know, positively, that all of the DNA samples recovered belong to the same, male, subject, who we believe is Mr. Decker.”
Decker has been on the run since he failed to drop off his three daughters after a scheduled visitation on May 30, the day police believe he allegedly suffocated them to death. The manhunt has dragged on for more than a month, and police stated that they have considered the possibility that he is no longer alive.
As previously reported by Law&Crime, Decker is ex-military and known to be a skilled survivalist who has gone off the grid for more than two months at a time. Authorities advised that if he is still alive, he may have changed his appearance. In an affidavit, the U.S. Marshals Service also stated that there was evidence Decker may be planning to cross the U.S.-Canada border.
Travis Decker has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of kidnapping in connection with the deaths of his daughters.
Police have warned the public that if they see Travis Decker, they should call 911 immediately and “do not attempt to contact or approach him.” Anyone with information is urged to contact the nearest U.S. Marshals office, the U.S. Marshals Service Communications Center at 1-800-336-0102, or USMS Tips.
