New potential evidence recovered near site where three girls were found dead after visiting estranged father
Different items have been found near the crime scene where three young girls were allegedly killed by their estranged father after a visit.
ABC News reported on Thursday, Aug. 28 that the FBI has completed its search operations in Rock Island Campground in Leavenworth, Washington after two days. It was where the young girls—Paityn Decker, 9; Evelyn Decker, 8; and Olivia Decker, 5—were found lifeless in June, according to W. Mike Herrington, the special agent in charge of the FBI Seattle field office.
More than a hundred personnel gathered in an attempt to find the suspect, Travis Decker, and “discover signs of his whereabouts or find any other evidence of the murder of his three daughters,” but to no avail.
Several items, however, were recovered and “are now being examined to determine if they are related to this investigation.”
"Finding this potential evidence emphasizes the value in having various teams search an area multiple times, especially in such challenging conditions," Herrington said, noting that the results could take a while.
The Decker sisters were found dead on June 2 three days after they visited their estranged father. They were located after the authorities found Travis' pickup truck, where investigators have collected a "large amount of evidence," including many of his personal items.
Their autopsy showed in the same month that they died due to suffocation.
"The suspect’s dog was recovered and turned over to the humane society for safe care," police said. "Blood samples taken from the scene have come back positive for belonging to a male, and another was not human blood. Further DNA and fingerprint analyses are still being conducted."
Travis is yet to be located by the authorities and is wanted on charges of murder, kidnapping, and custodial interference, as of writing.
In a press conference early this week, Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison assured the public that they "will not relent" and "not give up" on the search efforts no matter how long it will take.
“The girls would not want us to give up," he said.
