The Travis Decker Case: Timeline of the tragedy in which three innocent girls lost their lives

The case of the missing father, Travis Decker, who was named the prime suspect in the killing of his three daughters earlier this year, might finally be reaching an end after three months. The police say that they have recovered what are possibly the remains of the Washington father who has been on the run since his three girls were found dead on June 2. The remains were found south of the town of Leavenworth during a search, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said. A DNA analysis will be done to confirm whether they belong to Travis. The case of the missing girls who were later found dead shook the country. Paityn Decker, 9; Evelyn Decker, 8; and Olivia Decker, 5, were found dead near a Washington state campground after a search was initiated following a missing persons complaint by their mother, Whitney Decker.

What is the Travis Decker case?

The 32-year-old separated from his wife in 2023, and Whitney got full custody of the children. Travis was battling mental health issues, and so Whitney petitioned the court to "put restrictions in place on his parenting", her lawyer Arianna Cozart said earlier. However, he was granted visitation rights and could see the children for three hours on Fridays and eight hours every other weekend. Whitney said that everything was going fine and there were no red flags before May 30, when things changed. Travis was supposed to bring back the girls by 8 pm. When he did not show up, Whitney contacted the police. She suspected something was wrong since Travis wasn't answering her calls. Police found on May 31 that he did not reach the "planned 5K running event" either. The Wenatchee Police Department announced that the three girls were missing and described Travis as a "homeless" man who lived in his "vehicle or at various hotels/motels or at campgrounds in the area." An Amber alert was not sent out as officials said the case did not meet the criteria at the time.

Travis Decker case - Dead bodies of three girls is found

On June 2, the police found Travis Decker's vehicle near the Rock Island Campground in Chelan County. The three girls were later found dead at the scene, with their hands zip-tied and faces covered with plastic. Decker was nowhere to be found. More zip ties and plastic bags were discovered "strewn throughout the area," along with "two hand prints of blood" on the tailgate of the truck. A manhunt was launched for Decker, who police learnt had received extensive military training and was capable of surviving in the wild. He had been deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 and transferred to the Washington National Guard in 2021, according to a spokesperson for the Washington State Military Department.

Soon, the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the US Marshal's Office also joined the search operation. Gradually, more details about Travis's mental health condition emerged. Whitney's lawyer, Cozart, said that he suffered from PTSD and would often wake up screaming in the middle of the night, soaking the bed, and only getting one or two hours of sleep. An autopsy ruled suffocation as the cause of death and the manner of death homicide, the Chelan County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.

Travis Decker searched for how to move to Canada

On June 10, officials said they believed they had tracked Decker to an area near the remote campsite where his daughters were found dead days earlier. The Chelan County Sheriff's Office said in a statement that a hiking party saw a man who looked unprepared for the trail and was avoiding others. ABC News reported that Travis made several searches for moving to Canada, including "how does a person move to Canada" and "how to relocate to Canada," according to an affidavit obtained by the publication.

After weeks of search, the police said in a statement that it was highly unlikely that Travis was still alive, and so they shifted their resources to search for his remains.