(NewsNation) — Chelan County, Washington, authorities say it may be another two days before they learn whether human remains and clothing initially spotted by a police drone in a remote area belong to Travis Decker, the ex-soldier who allegedly killed his three young daughters before escaping into the wilderness earlier this year.
Sheriff Michael Morrison said Friday that clothing and other belongings recovered with the remains near the town of Leavenworth point to Decker, but it’s not certain until the Washington State Patrol’s crime lab says it is.
“We’re not going to congratulate each other, pat each other on the back, until we do get that DNA confirmation. But this is a good find,” Morrison told “Banfield” in an interview Friday.
Morrison said „abnormalities“ were spotted through drone images Thursday before detectives were brought in by helicopter to the wooded, steep terrain where the clothing and remains were found strewn about, possibly by wild animals. He said investigators also found two intact human feet. They have not recovered a weapon or written note, the sheriff said.
Forensics experts will try to determine how the individual died and how long the individual had been dead, Morrison said.
If it’s Decker and he did not meet with some kind of foul play, the sheriff said, it will mark an end to the case and the region’s biggest manhunt. He said he hopes such a resolution might bring a measure of closure to Decker’s ex-wife, Whitney, who was the mother of the slain children — 9-year-old Paityn, 8-year-old Evelyn and 5-year-old Olivia.
“It’s not going to bring her daughters back, no matter what,” Morrison said, “but if she can rest easier at night, I feel like we’ve accomplished at least a portion of our job.”
A variety of police agencies had been trying to track down Travis Decker since June 2, when authorities discovered the asphyxiated bodies of his daughters near a campsite. The 32-year-old former Army infantryman had picked up his children May 30 for a court-mandated parental visit but did not return them to the Wenatchee home of their mother.
Friends and family have said Decker suffered from mental illness that appeared to worsen in the months leading up to the murders.
Whitney Decker’s attorney, Arianna Cozart, previously said her client hopes that the tragedy brings about changes in the way Amber Alerts are issued and shines light on the mental health struggles of veterans.
“She knows that if he is found alive, he’ll never be able to answer the questions that she might have to a point where it would give her any peace,” Cozart said in June.
