Latest news with #SawtoothNationalForest
Fox News
15-07-2025
- Fox News
Innocent hiker mistaken for fugitive dad accused of killing his three daughters
A man hiking in the Idaho wilderness says he was mistaken for fugitive child murder suspect Travis Decker, who has been on the run since May 30. Decker is accused of killing his three daughters — Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5 — who were found at Rock Island Campground on June 2 after their mother reported them missing three days earlier, when they did not return home from a court-mandated custody visit with their father. U.S. Marshal Supervisory Deputy Michael Leigh said the USMS Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force on July 5 received a tip from a family in the Bear Creek area of Sawtooth National Forest in Idaho reporting the sighting of a man "consistent with the description of Travis Decker." "The person believed to be Travis Decker was described as a white male, 5'8"-5"10 wearing a black mesh cap, black gauged earrings, cream colored t-shirt, black shorts, long ponytail, black Garmin style watch, beard and mustache overgrown, wearing a black Jan Sport backpack and either converse or vans low top shoes," the USMS said in a July 7 press release. Days later, a Reddit user took to social media saying he was mistaken for Decker over the 4th of July weekend. The user said he and a friend went hiking on July 4, but his friend had to leave, so he went to hike the 889 Bear Creek trail alone the next morning at around 10 a.m. "Made it home safely on Sunday and my friend sent me a news article on Monday about the Decker sighting. We thought we stayed in the area with a killer," the user wrote. "On Tuesday the dots started connecting as news developed with better detail and I realized someone reported me as Decker." The hiker, identified only as Nick, told local news outlet Idaho News 6 that he had been unaware that authorities were searching for Decker in the area where he had been camping and hiking until he returned home. "Everything seems normal until my friend who was up there with me sent a text saying, 'Bro, there's a manhunt for a killer that was in the campground with us, my God we spent the night next to the murderer that is frightening,'" he told the outlet. Nick soon realized he matched the description of the suspect and contacted authorities, who met him at his workplace the following Wednesday. "They friendly interrogated me for half an hour," Nick told Idaho News 6. He added that those who reported him in the Sawtooth National Forest did what they were supposed to do in an ongoing search for a dangerous fugitive. "In my opinion, I don't realistically look like… that guy. [But] they saw me from a distance," Nick told Idaho News 6. "But be careful because this has been a little tumultuous for me and people around me. It's been disruptive at work, but I would encourage people to do that." Multiple local and federal agencies are involved in the active search for Decker. He drives a 2017 white GMC Sierra with the Washington license plate D20165C, according to authorities. A Chelan County sheriff's deputy found the truck around 4 p.m. on June 2 at the Rock Island Campground in Leavenworth, Washington. They found all three girls' bodies between 75 and 100 yards away, down an embankment, according to court documents. Each one had a plastic bag over her head, and "their wrists were also zip-tied or showed signs of being zip-tied," according to the affidavit. Deputies found two bloody handprints on the pickup's tailgate. Authorities warn that Decker should be considered armed and dangerous but insist they have no reason to believe he is a threat to public safety. He is charged with three counts of aggravated first-degree murder and kidnapping. The U.S. Marshals Service is offering a $20,000 reward for any information leading to Decker's arrest.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Yahoo
Travis Decker Lookalike Reveals Alarming Text He Received from Friend Before Realizing Police Were Looking for Him
The man mistaken for triple-murder suspect Travis Decker in Idaho while hiking over Fourth of July weekend is speaking out The person in question, known only as Nick, recalled the moment he realized police were looking for him after a family reported a sighting in Sawtooth National Forest I was like 'Oh my God, they think I was that guy,' " Nick told Idaho News 6 of being questioned politely by authoritiesThe man mistaken for missing father Travis Decker, who is accused of killing his three young girls over a month ago, is speaking out about the moment he realized the police were looking for him. Earlier this month, a media release shared by U.S. Marshals Service Supervisory Deputy Michael Leigh and obtained by PEOPLE confirmed that federal authorities were searching the Bear Creek area of the Sawtooth National Forest in Idaho after a family had potentially spotted Decker in the area on July 5. On Wednesday, July 9, Leigh then confirmed to PEOPLE in an email that the man wasn't Decker, with an update stating that the search of the forest had been called off. A man named Nick has now revealed he was the Decker lookalike police had been on the hunt for following the sighting, per Idaho News 6. Authorities have been searching for Decker since his daughters Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found dead on June 2. Revealing the moment he discovered police thought he was the triple-murder suspect, Nick recalled how the friend camping with him at the time had sent him a text once he saw that a manhunt in the area was underway, according to the outlet. The friends had spent the Fourth of July weekend in the backcountry, with the pair camping together in the woods on the Friday, before Nick's friend left on the Saturday and he decided to go toward the Bear Creek trail by himself. The publication stated that Nick had spent Saturday night in a different location, before heading home on the Sunday and returning to work in Boise on the Monday. Nick told Idaho News 6, "Everything seemed normal until my friend that was up there with me sent me a text that said something like, 'Bro, there's a manhunt, there's a killer that was in the campground with us,' " stating that his friend had sent over a news article regarding Decker. He said his "instinct" wasn't immediately to think police were looking for him, and that instead he focused on the fact they'd potentially spent "the night next to a murderer," which is "frightening." Nick said he called authorities, who then asked if they could speak to him at work on Wednesday, which is the day officials revealed that the forest search had been called off. "They friendly interrogated me for about half an hour. It described me like, the hair, the beard, the hat, the glasses, my earrings, tattoos, my shirt. The shorts were a different color, my shoes, the backpack, the location. I was like 'Oh my God, they think I was that guy,' " Nick recalled, per the outlet, referencing the family's description of him. "In my opinion, I don't really look like the guy. Granted, they saw me from a distance. But, just be careful because this has been a little bit tumultuous for me and people around me. [It's been] disruptive at work, but I would encourage people to do that," he added, insisting he thought the family made the correct decision to call the tip line. U.S. Marshals Service Supervisory Deputy Leigh didn't immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for comment on Nick's interview. Following the case of mistaken identity, the hunt for Decker continues, well over a month after his three girls were discovered deceased at 3:45 p.m. local time on June 2. Authorities had located their father's car near the Rock Island Campground in Chelan County, Washington state, the Wenatchee Police Department previously said in a June 3 release. The girls hadn't been seen since heading off with their father for a planned visitation on May 30. The victims' "cause of death was determined to be suffocation and the manner of death was determined to be homicide," per autopsy results confirmed in a June 9 press release shared with PEOPLE from the Chelan County Sheriff's Office. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Decker is wanted on first-degree murder and kidnapping charges. A GoFundMe page set up to help the girls' mother and Decker's ex-wife, Whitney Decker, with expenses and legal costs amid the tragic loss had raised almost $1.3 million as of Tuesday, July 15. If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
15-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Travis Decker's lookalike reveals US Marshals were hunting him
An Idaho man mistaken for 'killer dad' Travis Decker during a Fourth of July weekend hiking trip revealed how he realized he unknowingly triggered an interstate manhunt. A family camping at Sawtooth National Forest told police on July 5 they believed they saw Decker, who vanished after allegedly suffocating his three little girls and dumping their bodies near Washington's Rock Island Campground. The US Marshals Service soon after declared the search for the Army veteran fugitive, 32, had expanded to the Idaho wilderness. News of the shocking development in the hunt for Decker, who went missing more than a month ago, spread rapidly throughout fearful local communities. The announcement hit particularly close to home for a man named Nick, who was in the Bear Creek area of the park at the same time 'Decker' was spotted there. The Garden City resident told Idaho News 6 the friend he went camping with sent him an alarming text on Monday after they had both made it home. 'Bro, there's a manhunt for a killer that was in the campground with us. My God, we spent the night next the murder that is frightening,' the message read. And then it hit him. 'On Tuesday the dots started connecting as news developed with better detail and I realized someone reported me as Decker,' Nick elaborated in a Reddit thread. Nick's friend, who came with him on Friday, had to leave early Saturday morning. But he decided to stay and enjoy the scenic park on his time off from work. He recalled a brief interaction he had with four people while traveling alone on a Bear Creek trail on Saturday around 10am. 'About an hour later I returned to the main 889 trail and at the intersection, there was a group of four old timers in two Razors, right in the path, just sitting there as I approached down a switchback,' he explained on Reddit. 'They started to use the intersection to 3 point turn and leave. I stayed about 25 yards back and waited for the second Razor to fumble the steering, drive over bushes, apologize for her "[bad] driving" (her words) and finally make room for me to continue.' Nick has tattoos, a thick beard, long hair and earrings. While he was hiking on that Saturday, he was sporting a black backpack, a tan shirt and black shorts. This was the description the family gave to police - and it also happens to match what investigators say Decker may look like. 'In my opinion, I don't realistically look like that guy,' he told Idaho News 6. Nick was wearing sunglasses at the time and 'they saw me from a distance,' he added. When Nick came to the nerve-wracking realization that he had been confused with the suspected triple-murderer, he immediately tried to sound the alarm to authorities. He first tried the Fairfield Ranger Station, which is located in the national park, on Tuesday. But he said his call went straight to voicemail. Nick tried dialed the station again the following day and to his relief, someone picked up the phone this time around. He explained why he believed there may have been a mix up between him and Decker. Meanwhile, helicopters and search crews were swarming the Bear Creek area hoping to capture the wanted man. About three hours after he made the call, three plain-clothed US Marshals came to Nick's office, bringing security camera pictures of him to confirm his story. Soon after meeting with Nick, the agency suspended the Idaho manhunt. Eric Toms, supervisory deputy with the US Marshals, confirmed with USA TODAY on Thursday the Idaho hunt sparked by the July 5 tip was called off and that they spoke with Nick. But the over search for Decker is far from over, Toms assured. While investigators have been relentlessly searching for the veteran - vowing to get justice for his daughters he allegedly killed - they have considered the possibility that he may be dead , introducing cadaver dogs to their widespread manhunt. Decker has been missing since May 30, when he failed to return the three little girls, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, back to their mother Whitney after a visit. Whitney, who is divorced from the veteran, told police that he had picked the girls up around 5pm but had not returned them by 8pm, and his phone went straight to voicemail , court documents said. Detectives said she 'expressed concern because Decker reportedly has never done this before and … is currently experiencing some mental health issues.' She also told law enforcement officials that Decker was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and believes he did not take medication for the condition, according to court documents. He was court-mandated to seek out mental health and domestic violence anger management counseling, but refused treatment. At the time of his disappearance and his daughters' deaths, Decker was living out of a white 2017 GMC Sierra pickup truck, police said. 'He clearly had some sort of break and everything that he had been living with, everything that had been bottled up inside of him for so long as far as trauma, just won out,' Whitney's lawyer, Arianna Cozart, previously told the Seattle Times. On June 2, a search party led to the chilling discovery of the sisters' dead bodies near Rock Island Campground in Chelan County along with Decker's truck. Deputies found the girls' bodies about 75 to 100 yards from Decker's truck. An autopsy revealed the girls died from suffocation and police reported their wrists were zip-tied and plastic bags were over their heads when they were found, court documents said. Police collected 'a large amount of evidence' from the truck, including male blood and non-human blood. The alleged-killer's dog was found nearby as well and taken to an animal humane society, Fox 8 reported. Chilling audio from just months before the harrowing murders captured the fugitive father begging for more custody time to go camping with his daughters. In the recording from a September 2024 custody hearing, Decker makes an eerie promise that no harm would come to the girls if he's given more time to take them camping in Washington's wilderness. With an extensive combat background, authorities and locals have been concerned about Decker being on the loose. He joined the Army in 2013 and served in Afghanistan before transferring to the Washington National Guard in 2021, Karina Shagren, communications director for the Washington Military Department, confirmed to the Daily Mail. He was a full-time member of the Guard until 2023 or 2024, when he switched to part-time. Decker stopped attending mandatory monthly drills a little over a year ago, and the Guard was in the process of a disciplinary discharge. He likely has advanced combat training and was an airborne paratrooper who earned the elite rank of 'Ranger,' indicating he would have excellent wilderness and survival skills, Fox 13 Seattle reported, citing social media posts. Decker is charged with three counts of first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping.
Daily Mail
15-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Travis Decker's doppelganger reveals the heart-stopping moment he realized US Marshals were hunting him
An Idaho man mistaken for 'killer dad' Travis Decker during a Fourth of July weekend hiking trip revealed how he realized he unknowingly triggered an interstate manhunt. A family camping at Sawtooth National Forest told police on July 5 they believed they saw Decker, who vanished after allegedly suffocating his three little girls and dumping their bodies near Washington's Rock Island Campground. The US Marshals Service soon after declared the search for the Army veteran fugitive, 32, had expanded to the Idaho wilderness. News of the shocking development in the hunt for Decker, who went missing more than a month ago, spread rapidly throughout fearful local communities. The announcement hit particularly close to home for a man named Nick, who was in the Bear Creek area of the park at the same time 'Decker' was spotted there. The Garden City resident told Idaho News 6 the friend he went camping with sent him an alarming text on Monday after they had both made it home. 'Bro, there's a manhunt for a killer that was in the campground with us. My God, we spent the night next the murder that is frightening,' the message read. And then it hit him. 'On Tuesday the dots started connecting as news developed with better detail and I realized someone reported me as Decker,' Nick elaborated in a Reddit thread. Nick's friend, who came with him on Friday, had to leave early Saturday morning. But he decided to stay and enjoy the scenic park on his time off from work. He recalled a brief interaction he had with four people while traveling alone on a Bear Creek trail on Saturday around 10am. 'About an hour later I returned to the main 889 trail and at the intersection, there was a group of four old timers in two Razors, right in the path, just sitting there as I approached down a switchback,' he explained on Reddit. 'They started to use the intersection to 3 point turn and leave. I stayed about 25 yards back and waited for the second Razor to fumble the steering, drive over bushes, apologize for her "sh*tty driving" (her words) and finally make room for me to continue.' Nick has tattoos, a thick beard, long hair and earrings. While he was hiking on that Saturday, he was sporting a black backpack, a tan shirt and black shorts. This was the description the family gave to police - and it also happens to match what investigators say Decker may look like. 'In my opinion, I don't realistically look like that guy,' he told Idaho News 6. Nick was wearing sunglasses at the time and 'they saw me from a distance,' he added. When Nick came to the nerve-wracking realization that he had been confused with the suspected triple-murderer, he immediately tried to sound the alarm to authorities. He first tried the Fairfield Ranger Station, which is located in the national park, on Tuesday. But he said his call went straight to voicemail. Nick tried dialed the station again the following day and to his relief, someone picked up the phone this time around. He explained why he believed there may have been a mix up between him and Decker. Meanwhile, helicopters and search crews were swarming the Bear Creek area hoping to capture the wanted man. About three hours after he made the call, three plain-clothed US Marshals came to Nick's office, bringing security camera pictures of him to confirm his story. Soon after meeting with Nick, the agency suspended the Idaho manhunt. Eric Toms, supervisory deputy with the US Marshals, confirmed with USA TODAY on Thursday the Idaho hunt sparked by the July 5 tip was called off and that they spoke with Nick. But the over search for Decker is far from over, Toms assured. While investigators have been relentlessly searching for the veteran - vowing to get justice for his daughters he allegedly killed - they have considered the possibility that he may be dead, introducing cadaver dogs to their widespread manhunt. Decker has been missing since May 30, when he failed to return the three little girls, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, back to their mother Whitney after a visit. Whitney, who is divorced from the veteran, told police that he had picked the girls up around 5pm but had not returned them by 8pm, and his phone went straight to voicemail, court documents said. Detectives said she 'expressed concern because Decker reportedly has never done this before and … is currently experiencing some mental health issues.' She also told law enforcement officials that Decker was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and believes he did not take medication for the condition, according to court documents. He was court-mandated to seek out mental health and domestic violence anger management counseling, but refused treatment. At the time of his disappearance and his daughters' deaths, Decker was living out of a white 2017 GMC Sierra pickup truck, police said. 'He clearly had some sort of break and everything that he had been living with, everything that had been bottled up inside of him for so long as far as trauma, just won out,' Whitney's lawyer, Arianna Cozart, previously told the Seattle Times. On June 2, a search party led to the chilling discovery of the sisters' dead bodies near Rock Island Campground in Chelan County along with Decker's truck. Deputies found the girls' bodies about 75 to 100 yards from Decker's truck. An autopsy revealed the girls died from suffocation and police reported their wrists were zip-tied and plastic bags were over their heads when they were found, court documents said. Police collected 'a large amount of evidence' from the truck, including male blood and non-human blood. The alleged-killer's dog was found nearby as well and taken to an animal humane society, Fox 8 reported. Chilling audio from just months before the harrowing murders captured the fugitive father begging for more custody time to go camping with his daughters. In the recording from a September 2024 custody hearing, Decker makes an eerie promise that no harm would come to the girls if he's given more time to take them camping in Washington's wilderness. With an extensive combat background, authorities and locals have been concerned about Decker being on the loose. He joined the Army in 2013 and served in Afghanistan before transferring to the Washington National Guard in 2021, Karina Shagren, communications director for the Washington Military Department, confirmed to the Daily Mail. He was a full-time member of the Guard until 2023 or 2024, when he switched to part-time. Decker stopped attending mandatory monthly drills a little over a year ago, and the Guard was in the process of a disciplinary discharge. He likely has advanced combat training and was an airborne paratrooper who earned the elite rank of 'Ranger,' indicating he would have excellent wilderness and survival skills, Fox 13 Seattle reported, citing social media posts. Decker is charged with three counts of first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping.
Daily Mail
10-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Frantic search for 'killer dad' Travis Decker ends with discovery of his LOOKALIKE
Authorities in Idaho have called off their search for alleged 'killer dad' Travis Decker after a potential sighting of the suspect led investigators to a lookalike hiker. Decker, 33, is accused of murdering his three daughters, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, and leaving their bodies a campsite in Leavenworth, Washington. He has been on the run since their bodies were found on June 2. Investigators had hoped for a potential break in the case over the Fourth of July weekend when a family reported seeing a man who matched Decker's description in the Sawtooth National Forest. The US Marshals Service Greater Idaho Task Force announced that that the man was only a doppelganger. 'The hiker who is the same height and roughly the same weight as Decker, also has dark features, a beard and tattoos on his arm and calf,' US Marshals Service Supervisory Deputy Michael Leigh said in a press release. 'Investigators interviewed the cooperative man and confirmed he was hiking in the Bear Creek area this past weekend. 'At this time, law enforcement has stopped searching for Decker at the Sawtooth National Forest and has begun to demobilize their resources.' Leigh told local news station KREM that the Decker lookalike had seemed 'out of place.' 'He was a bit out of place. It was described that he didn't have hiking boots. He's avoiding eye contact, and he was on an ATV, UTV trail that usually isn't trafficked by hikers,' Leigh said. 'And then the tattoos that the tips are described was pretty accurate. You know, the unique design of his tattoos. And then even the locations were pretty accurate.' The family was camping in the Bear Creek area of the vast forest, which spans over two million acres across Idaho and Utah, when they spotted the unidentified man who was between 5'8" and 5'10," with black gauged earrings and a black backpack. They added that he was wearing a black mesh cap, a cream-colored shirt, and black shorts. He had his hair in a ponytail and he had a mustache and an overgrown beard. The description matches Decker, who is 5'8"and weighs around 190 pounds, according to the Chelan County Sheriff's Office. He also has black hair, brown eyes and earrings. The nightmare saga began on May 30 when Decker picked his daughters up from their mother Whitney's home. Whitney contacted police later that evening after Decker failed to bring the girls home. She expressed concern to authorities due to her ex-husband's history with mental health and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from his time in the military. Decker was court-mandated to receive mental health treatment and domestic violence anger management counseling but had refused. Police said he was homeless and living out of his car. Reports swirled two days later that Decker was spotted in Idaho, but authorities later dispelled the rumors. An autopsy then confirmed the girls' cause of death was suffocation and their deaths were ruled a homicide. Authorities later said that there was no evidence that Decker was still alive as the sheriff's office pivoted their search with cadaver dogs. However, some experts, including law enforcement and security analyst Todd McGhee, said that Decker's extensive military background may have enabled him to live in the wilderness. Decker joined the Army in 2013 and served in Afghanistan before transferring to the Washington National Guard in 2021. The Guard was in the process of a disciplinary discharge due to Decker's absences when his daughters were killed.
