Remains Believed to Be Travis Decker Found Near Leavenworth

Human remains believed to be those of Travis Decker were discovered Thursday in a remote drainage in the Cascade Mountains near Leavenworth, Washington, nearly four months after the former soldier vanished following the killings of his three young daughters, authorities said. Preliminary findings indicate the remains are consistent with Decker, but officials said positive identification will require DNA analysis by the Washington State Patrol crime lab.

Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison said crime scene teams were processing the site with assistance from the Washington State Patrol and that investigators were awaiting formal confirmation. "We are waiting for further confirmation tomorrow, but it seems to be consistent with clothing we believe he was last seen in," he told reporters, according to a sheriff's office statement.

Decker had been sought on charges of first degree murder and first degree kidnapping after the bodies of his daughters Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found June 2 at a campground outside Leavenworth. The girls were discovered with plastic bags over their heads and zip ties binding their wrists. An autopsy determined their cause of death to be...