WENATCHEE, Wash. — Newly released video and witness interviews may provide more insights into the mental state of wanted murder suspect Travis Decker, accused of killing his three daughters at a campsite outside Leavenworth in June.
A 19 minute and 41 second dash cam video from the Wenatchee Police Department shows Decker interacting with a police officer and another motorist after Decker slammed into a car at a red light on North Miller Street in Wenatchee on May 27.
Three days later, Decker disappeared with his three young daughters who were later found murdered.
KING 5 obtained the video and other records through a public records request to Wenatchee police.
The driver who Decker hit declined an on-camera interview, but said Decker was “nervous and fidgety” and “kept telling me not to call police.” When told he had to report the accident he said Decker “looked almost intimidating to me.” He said Decker didn’t say anything threatening, but it was more his “body language," the driver said.
On the video, Decker can be seen with his arms crossed, leaning up against his truck and resting on the truck bed looking exhausted.
“I could tell he was not in his full senses,” the other driver said, noting Decker’s odd questions and answers.
KING 5 reported in June that Decker was involved in two auto collisions three weeks apart and that, along with court records about his “mental health”, could be evidence of the former Army Ranger’s mental deterioration. In court records, his ex-wife’s attorney warned a judge that Decker was living out of his truck and questioned his ability to provide a safe place for his three children to visit.
Records just released by the Wenatchee Police Department include a brief accident report filed on May 4 by a couple whose Honda CRV was “rear ended by a truck (and the) truck continued on.” The couple tailed the truck and got a license plate number. Wenatchee police traced the truck to Decker, but did not pursue the case at the victims' request.
In a phone call with KING 5, the man said there was no visible damage to his vehicle. He said he was unaware that Decker was the suspect until informed by the TV station.
In the May 27 crash, the dash cam video ends with Decker extending his hand for an uncomfortable, nine-second long handshake with the crash victim. The victim tried to pull his hand away, but Decker kept asking him if he was going to be OK. “He did get a full grip of my hand,” the man said.
Days later he saw a Facebook post about the missing girls and recognized Decker. The shock stopped him cold. “I had to stop what I was doing and sit down,” he said.
Read more: