Forest Search for "Killer Dad" Travis Decker Called Off After False-Alarm Sighting | Crime Alert 11AM 07.10.25

Federal officials have provided a new update regarding the ongoing search for Travis Decker, a man suspected of murdering his three young daughters over a month ago.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Crime Alart hourly update breaking crime news Now. I'm Nicole Parton.
Federal officials have provided a new update regarding the ongoing
search for Travis Decker, a man suspected of murdering his
three young daughters over a month ago. Decker was recently
reported to have been seen in Idaho, prompting authorities to
intensify their efforts to locate him. On Wednesday, July ninth,

(00:23):
Supervisory Deputy Michael Lee of the US Marshall Services announced
that a man who resembled Decker, previously noticed by a
family enjoying activities in the Bear Creek area of the
Sawtooth National Forest, had been located. However, it was confirmed
that man was not Decker. Investigators spoke with the man,

(00:44):
who cooperated and verified that he had been hiking in
the Bear Creek area last weekend. Lee stated the search
in that area has since ended. Authorities have been actively
pursuing Decker since the tragic discovery of his daughters, Peyton nine,
Evelyn eight, and a Olivia five, who were found dead
on June two. The girls were located at three forty

(01:05):
five pm local time after law enforcement identified their father's
vehicle near Rock Island Campground in Shelan County, Washington. They
were last seen with Decker during a planned visitation on
May thirty. On June ninth, the Shelan County Sheriff's office
confirmed that an autopsy had been conducted. The results revealed

(01:25):
that the cause of death was suffocation and the manner
of death was ruled homicide. According to a July sixth
press release from the US Marshall Service's Greater Idaho Task Force,
a family reported seeing a man matching Decker's description on
July five. The individual was described as a white male
about five eight to five ten, wearing a black mesh cap,

(01:47):
black gauged earrings, and a cream colored T shirt. The
observer noted that he had a long ponytail and unkempt beard,
and was wearing Converse or Van Tennis shoes. The family
remarked that the man of woid did eye contact and
did not respond when they attempted to communicate with him.
The manhunt continues, as authorities have determined that the siding

(02:09):
was a case of mistaken identity. The US Marshall Services
is offering a reward of twenty thousand dollars for information
leading to Decker's capture. County Sheriff Mike Morrison recently discussed
the potential for finding Decker alive. Following the confirmation that
DNA from blood found on the tailgate of Decker's truck

(02:29):
matched his profile, Morrison indicated the blood likely stemmed from
an injury, although the specifics of that injury are still unclear.
The sheriff says they are continuing to search and now
will even begin to search more waterway areas total the next.

Speaker 2 (02:46):
Couple days before you're going to see the National Park
Service is going to be putting their swift water rescue
team into the icicle and we're going to check as
far down as we can. The goals reached the Columbia River,
but having been on the swiftwater rescue team myself in
the past, I get that's a lofty goal, but we
appreciate them being here, and then our schoolwater rescue teamill
also be going in here at the end of this month,
so we're going to use as many resources as possible.

(03:07):
We still have the US Marshals on the ground that
are falling up on leads, and last week we had
a search and rescue team that was going through the
area of the crime scene. We had twenty five members
out there with US four service members members of our
agency doing a grid pattern search, and we've also deployed
additional resources up and at the enchantments again with the
mountaineering team and I guess and to deploying kidaver dogs
within the Engles Creek area.

Speaker 1 (03:29):
The sheriff went on to speculate if he were to
have died, it might have been due to a fall
or perhaps an injury that became infected or drowning. He
emphasized the range of possibilities and confirmed that should Decker
be found dead, a thorough autopsy would be conducted to
determine the cause of death. Decker is currently wanted on
charges of first degree murder and kidnapping or Crime and

(03:53):
Justice news after this. A woman from California is facing
serious consequences after she reportedly left her two young sons
in a hot car while undergoing a cosmetic procedure. Maya Hernandez, twenty,
entered a not guilty plea on July one to a

(04:15):
charge of manslaughter and two counts of willful cruelty to
a child. She is currently in custody at the Kerne
County Jail, with bell set it over a million dollars.
According to the criminal complaint obtained by k FSN, Hernandez
took her two young children, a two year old boy
and her one year old Amelio, to a medical SPA

(04:35):
appointment in Bakersfield. Authority stated that while she completed paperwork
and received lip filler, Hernandez left her two children in
the car temperatures soared into the triple digits. This was
despite having contacted the facility earlier in the day to
confirm if she could bring her sons inside. The SPA

(04:56):
reportedly responded, sure, if you don't mind them running in
the waiting room room and waiting for u hun According
to local ABC affiliate ker, instead of bringing the boys inside,
Hernandez left them strapped in their car seats with the
car locked. The complaint notes that the cosmetic procedure she
was undergoing lasted about twenty minutes. However, employees at the

(05:17):
SPA indicated that due to the high customer volume on
June twenty nine, Hernandez was away from her car for
nearly two and a half hours without checking on her children.
Hernandez later explained to law enforcement that she believed her
sons would be fine because she had left the air
conditioning running. KGET reported that Hernandez drove a twenty twenty

(05:39):
two Toyota Corolla hybrid, which, according to experts, is designed
to shut off its engine after one hour. When the
children were discovered inside the car, it was already hot.
Authorities estimated that the boys spent about an hour and
a half in the car without air conditioning. The outside
temperatures reached one hundred and two degrees that day. When

(06:00):
Hernandez returned to her car at four thirty pm after
her procedure, she found Amilio having a seizure and foaming
at the mouth. Staff from inside the medical spa rushed
outside to help and took the two year old into
the facility to cool him down. Police arrived shortly after
four forty five pm. Amilio, whose body temperature had reached

(06:21):
one hundred and seven degrees, was transported to the hospital,
where he was pronounced dead at five forty eight pm.
His older brother was hospitalized and placed into protective custody.
The criminal complaint revealed that upon learning of her younger
son's death, Hernandez acknowledged to police that she recognized it
was irresponsible to leave them in the car. She admitted

(06:43):
to having thought about the decision while leaving them, but
could not provide a valid reason for her actions. Hernandez
is set to appear in court on July fourteenth. For
the latest crime injustice news. Follow Crime Alert hourly update
on your favorite podcasting apt with this crime Alert. I'm
Nicol Parton.