A possible sighting of Travis Decker, the Washington father accused of killing his three young daughters, has been reported in the remote Bear Creek area of Idaho’s Sawtooth National Forest, according to U.S. Marshals.
The man, described as standing between 5-foot 8-inches and 5-foot 10-inches, was wearing a black mesh cap, black gauged earrings, a cream-colored T-shirt, black shorts and either Converse or Vans shoes, according to Fox 13 Seattle and KOMO News.
He was spotted on Saturday, July 5, by a family camping southeast of Stanley, Idaho, who reported seeing a man matching Decker’s description.
They told authorities that the man had a long ponytail, an overgrown beard and mustache, a black Garmin watch, and was carrying a black JanSport backpack, Idaho News 6 reported. He reportedly avoided eye contact and did not respond when they tried to talk to him.
Decker, 39, has been the subject of a nationwide manhunt since June 2, when his daughters, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found dead near the Rock Island Campground in Chelan County, Washington. He is wanted on first-degree murder and kidnapping charges.
The latest sighting in the rugged terrain of Bear Creek region, is an area that aligns with previous warnings from law enforcement about Decker’s extensive survival skills.
Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison has previously stated that Decker, an Army veteran, has spent extended periods living off the grid and is capable of surviving in remote wilderness areas for long durations.
This is the second reported sighting of Decker in Idaho. An earlier report from the town of McCall in June was determined to be a false alarm.
But the U.S. Marshals Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force has confirmed they are actively investigating this new report and are asking the public for any additional information.
Authorities believe Decker may have been injured, based on blood evidence found at the original crime scene in Washington. On July 1, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that DNA from blood found on the tailgate of Decker’s abandoned truck matched his profile. His wallet and cellphone were also recovered at the scene.
Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison told PEOPLE that investigators believe the blood may have come from an injury, though the severity is unclear.
“I would imagine most likely if he were to have died, it would've been from falling; an injury maybe got infected to the point where it did cause him, you know, some further issues or he drowned.” Morrison said.
“There's certainly a lot of possibilities and if we do find him deceased, of course we're going to do a full autopsy on him just to get confirmation on his cause of death.”
Despite the uncertainty, law enforcement remains focused on locating Decker alive.
The discovery of the girls’ bodies on June 2 followed a missing persons report after they failed to return from a planned visitation with their father on May 30. The Chelan County Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death as suffocation, and the manner of death as homicide.
As of Monday, a GoFundMe campaign for the girls’ mother, Whitney Decker, has raised over $1.2 million.
