WENATCHEE, Wash – He was the subject of a massive manhunt for months and even though Travis Decker’s remains have been found, the coroner warns we may never know how he died.
Decker is accused of killing his three young daughters near Leavenworth this summer. Investigators found remains last week and announced Thursday the DNA matched Decker’s.
Coroner Wayne Harris issued a news release Friday, saying because of the condition of the remains, an autopsy can’t be done.
Harris said, “based on the limited skeletal remains that were obtained, that answer [of how he died] will most likely never be known.”
“The torso and cranium are yet to be located, and they may hold the clues necessary to prove a cause of death,” Harris said. “Because of the timeframe that has passed, the summer weather conditions and animal activity in the area where the remains were found, no biological tissue or material have been obtained.”
Harris said Decker’s remains were found in five different areas.
The state called in an anthropologist who examined the bones and said there were no fractures that would indicate Decker fell.
“I realize that this story has been of great interest to many, but in our field of work, answers we seek, are occasionally not often known,” Harris said. “The greatest hope is now the Decker family and the community can begin to heal.”
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