SEATTLE (AP) — Authorities who have spent the past three weeks searching in the mountains of Washington state for an ex-soldier wanted in the deaths of his three young daughters say there is no evidence that he remains in the area or that he is alive at all.
Travis Decker, 32, has been wanted since June 2, when a sheriff’s deputy found his truck and the bodies of his three daughters — 9-year-old Paityn Decker, 8-year-old Evelyn Decker and 5-year-old Olivia Decker — at a campground outside Leavenworth. The discovery came three days after he failed to return the girls to their mother’s home in Wenatchee, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of Seattle, following a scheduled visit.
“There is no certain evidence that Decker remains alive or in this area,” the Kittitas County Sheriff's Office said in a social media post Monday. “Seemingly strong early leads gave way to less convincing proofs over the last two weeks of searching. Still, we can’t and won’t quit this search; Paityn, Evelyn, and Olivia Decker deserve justice. And Decker remains a danger to the public as long as he’s at large.”
The post said resources were being shifted to focus on finding Decker's remains “if he died in the rugged wilderness during this intense search — a possibility that increases every day.” Sheriff's Inspector Chris Whitsett said Tuesday that includes the use of dogs trained to find human remains.
“Because of the ruggedness, the remoteness of the of that country, and some of the conditions that we’ve observed, it’s clear that the longer he stays out there — the longer anybody stays out there — the greater the chance that something’s gonna happen, and whether he intends it or not, that he’s gonna die,” Whitsett said.
The U.S. Marshals Service is working to track down Decker if he managed to escape the region, the sheriff's office said, and extra patrols have been on duty. The killings occurred in neighboring Chelan County, but backcountry trails link the area to Kittitas and to the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs from Canada to Mexico.
It would not be unprecedented for Decker to evade a search in the rugged, remote region for three weeks; the area is dotted with abandoned buildings as well as unoccupied vacation homes in which he might find shelter, as well as caves and former mines.
In 2020, Jorge Alacantara-Gonzalez, who was wanted in the killing of a turkey hunter, spent 23 days on the run in much of the same terrain. He was finally caught when someone called police to report seeing someone in a cabin that should have been unoccupied.
Authorities looking for Decker say they are similarly relying on tips from the public to help find him. They have asked people to be alert in the backcountry and to check surveillance or game cameras on their properties.
Earlier this month, hikers in a popular Cascade Range backpacking area called The Enchantments reported seeing a lone person who appeared to be ill-prepared for the conditions and seemed to be avoiding others. A helicopter crew responded and spotted an off-trail hiker near an alpine lake.
The person ran from sight as the helicopter passed, the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office said. Authorities later found a trail, and K-9 teams tracked the person to the area of the Ingalls Creek Trailhead, south of Leavenworth, before the trail went cold.
“We still believe public awareness and help is our best tool — whether it comes from a cabin owner who finds something out of place, a hiker in the Enchantments who discovers evidence our searches missed, or anyone else,” the sheriff’s office said.
Decker was an infantryman in the Army from March 2013 to July 2021 and deployed to Afghanistan for four months in 2014. He has training in navigation, survival and other skills, authorities have said, and he once spent more than two months living in the backwoods off the grid.
Last September, Decker’s ex-wife, Whitney Decker, wrote in a petition to modify their parenting plan that his mental health issues had worsened and that he had become increasingly unstable. He was often living out of his truck, and she sought to restrict him from having overnight visits with their daughters until he found housing.
An autopsy determined the girls’ cause of death to be suffocation. They had been bound with zip ties and had plastic bags placed over their heads.
In this handout photo provided by the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office deputies participate in the search for Travis Decker, at an undisclosed location in Washington state, Friday, June 6, 2025. (Snohomish County Sheriff's Office photo via AP)
In this handout photo provided by the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office deputies participate in the search for Travis Decker, at an undisclosed location in Washington state, Friday, June 6, 2025. (Snohomish County Sheriff's Office photo via AP)
In this handout photo provided by the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office deputies participate in the search for Travis Decker, at an undisclosed location in Washington state, Friday, June 6, 2025. (Snohomish County Sheriff's Office photo via AP)
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills fans arrived early and lingered long after the game ended to bid what could be farewell to their long-time home stadium filled with 53 years of memories — and often piles of snow.
After singing along together to The Killers' “Mr. Brightside” in the closing minutes of a 35-8 victory against the New York Jets, most everyone in the crowd of 70,944 remained in their seats to bask in the glow of fireworks as Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World” played over the stadium speakers.
Several players stopped in the end zone to watch a retrospective video, with the Buffalo-based Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” as the soundtrack while fans recorded selfie videos of the celebratory scene. Offensive lineman Alec Anderson even jumped into the crowd to pose for pictures before leaving the field.
With the Bills (12-5), the AFC's 6th seed, opening the playoffs at Jacksonville in the wild-card round next week, there's but a slim chance they'll play at their old home again. Next season, Buffalo is set to move into its new $1.2 billion facility being built across the street.
The farewell game evoked “a lifetime of memories,” said Therese Forton-Barnes, selected the team’s Fan of the Year, before the Bills kicked of their regular-season finale. “In our culture that we know and love, we can bond together from that experience. Our love for this team, our love for this city, have branched from those roots.”
Forton-Barnes, a past president of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame, attended Bills games as a child at the old War Memorial Stadium in downtown Buffalo, colloquially known as “The Rockpile.” She has been a season ticket holder since Jim Kelly joined the Bills in 1986 at what was then Rich Stadium, later renamed for the team’s founding owner Ralph Wilson, and then corporate sponsors New Era and Highmark.
“I’ve been to over 350 games,” she said. “Today we’re here to cherish and celebrate the past, present and future. We have so many memories that you can’t erase at Rich Stadium, The Ralph, and now Highmark. Forever we will hold these memories when we move across the street.”
There was a celebratory mood to the day, with fans arriving early. Cars lined Abbott Road some 90 minutes before the stadium lots opened for a game the Bills rested most of their starters, with a brisk wind blowing in off of nearby Lake Erie and with temperatures dipping into the low 20s.
And most were in their seats when Bills owner Terry Pegula thanked fans and stadium workers in a pregame address.
With Buffalo leading 21-0 at halftime, many fans stayed in their seats as Kelly and fellow Pro Football Hall of Famer Andre Reed addressed them from the field, and the team played a video message from 100-year-old Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy.
“The fans have been unbelievable,” said Jack Hofstetter, a ticket-taker since the stadium opened in 1973 who was presented with Super Bowl tickets before Sunday’s game by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield. “I was a kid making 8 bucks a game back in those days. I got to see all the sports, ushering in the stadium and taking tickets later on. All the memories, it’s been fantastic.”
Bud Light commemorated the stadium finale and Bills fan culture with the release of a special-edition beer brewed with melted snow shoveled out of the stadium earlier this season.
In what has become a winter tradition at the stadium, fans were hired to clear the stands after a lake-effect storm dropped more than a foot of snow on the region this week.
The few remaining shovelers were still present clearing the pathways and end zone stands of snow some five hours before kickoff. The new stadium won’t require as many shovelers, with the field heated and with more than two-thirds of the 60,000-plus seats covered by a curved roof overhang.
Fears of fans rushing the field were abated with large contingent of security personnel and backed by New York State troopers began lining the field during the final 2-minute warning.
Fans stayed in the stands, singing along to the music, with many lingering to take one last glimpse inside the stadium where the scoreboard broadcast one last message:
“Thank You, Bills Mafia.”
AP Sports Writer John Wawrow contributed.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Fans watch a ceremony after the Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White (27) remains on the field to watch a tribute video after the Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y.(AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Fans watch a ceremony after the Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Fans celebrate after the Buffalo Bills scored a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Fans celebrate and throw snow in the stands after an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Aga Deters, right, and her husband Fred Deters, walk near Highmark Stadium before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Michael Wygant shoves snow from a tunnel before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Alec Anderson (70) spikes the ball after running back Ty Johnson scored a touchdown against the New York Jets in the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
FILE - The existing Highmark Stadium, foreground, frames the construction on the new Highmark Stadium, upper right, which is scheduled to open with the 2026 season, shown before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots, Oct. 5, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
Salt crew member Jim Earl sprinkles salt in the upper deck before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
