Going West: True Crime - The Delphi Murders // 285

Starting point is 00:00:00 What is going on True Crime fans? I'm your host Tee. And I'm your host Daphne. And you're listening to Going West. Hello everybody! So over the years, today's case has been recommended so many times by honestly way too many people to count. I think it's at least 30, so thank you all so much to you who have, you know who you are. Heath and I have known about this case since it happened and we know a bunch of you guys do too, but something to remember is that there are grieving families out there who need answers, so although it's not on the kind of lesser known scale, like we usually try to do, it still really matters and deserves all the attention. So we're looking forward to finally diving into it today.

Starting point is 00:00:53 Yeah, and now that there has been so many updates in this case, it feels like it's time to cover it. That is a good point too. There has been, I mean, even as a four days ago from the day we're recording this episode, there was a potential update. So it's like, there's always stuff coming out about this case at CMSO. Maybe things that you guys have not yet heard. Alright guys, well, this is episode 285 of Going West, so let's get into it. It was February 13th, 2017.

Starting point is 00:02:01 Libby and Abby had the day off from school. They decided to come here and take a walk on the trail. But when they didn't come back to the place where they were supposed to be picked up, their family's news something was wrong. After nearly a day of searching, a small town community's hope turns to heart break. The search for two missing 13-year-old girls leads a least to two bodies. And just one day later investigators released this image, which they say The search for two missing 13-year-old girls leads police to two bodies. And just one day later investigators released this image,

Starting point is 00:02:32 which they say was taken by Libby on her cell phone. The man in the photo would become the face of the investigation for nearly six years. Police say they believe that person was responsible for the girl's deaths. The release of the audio has triggered more than 8,000 tips. Somebody knows this voice. Somebody has to know who this guy is. We are begging you, begging you to come up and to come forward. I am proud to report to you that today, actually last Friday,

Starting point is 00:03:04 was the day. And an arrest has been made. Liberty Rose, Lynn German, who more commonly went by Libby, was born on December 27, 2002 to carry and derrick German. She was born in Lafayette, Indiana, which is about an hour northwest of the big city of Indianapolis. She did join a sister who is two years her senior named Kelsey and their parents, again Carrie and Derek, divorced when both Libby and Kelsey were very young and the girls actually went on to live with their paternal grandparents who are Becky and Mike Paddy in Delphi, Indiana, where today's story takes place.

Starting point is 00:04:02 Now to explain Becky and Mike Paddy a little bit. So basically, Derek's parents are named Becky and Brad German, and they divorced and both remarried. So Becky, his mom married a guy named Mike Paddy, and Brad, Derek's dad, married a woman named Terry. So Libby and Kelsey were living with their grandmother Becky and

Starting point is 00:04:25 step grandfather technically Mike Patty. So just for ease though, we're just gonna refer to them as her grandparents and we're gonna refer to Mike Patty as her grandfather because it's a little complex. So after the girl's parents divorced, Carrie German, their mother moved to Kentucky, which is about four hours away from where Libby and Kelsey lived in Delphi. Carrie found love again, marrying a man named Harley Timmins, and they had two more children, who ended up being the German girls' half-sisters, Alexis and Hayden.

Starting point is 00:04:58 Derek, who is Libby's dad, ended up moving in with his mom, his stepfather, and daughters back in Delphi, which is about a 25-minute drive away from Lafayette where Libby was born. So you know, now the girls are living under the same roof with their dad again, and their grandparents and their mom is living in Kentucky. Okay, I think we got it now. Yes, sorry, it's a little complicated, but anyway. So Libby and Kelsey also have another half or step-cell sibling in Delphi named Glena Myers, though it's unclear how she's related to the family or why she has a different last name. But regardless of all this family history, this large blended family seemed to be incredibly supportive and loving.

Starting point is 00:05:43 Libby was very close to her grandparents and even closer to her sister Kelsey. Kelsey remembers them as best friends, saying that they spent most of their time together and would tell each other everything. Libby was an incredibly smart and gifted teenager. Her grandmother Becky remembers, quote, Libby wanted to try everything. Mike did archery, so she decided that she wanted to do archery too.

Starting point is 00:06:09 She wanted to golf so we got a set of golf clubs. She was willing to try anything. In addition to golf and archery, she was a gifted athlete and relished staying active. She played volleyball, soccer, softball, and she loved to swim. She was also very creative and enjoyed playing the saxophone in her school band, along with doing visual arts at home, including painting and crafts. Both Libby and Kelsey loved photography, something that they enjoyed doing together. They would often go out hiking and biking to photograph wildlife. Libby was known for her huge heart and sense of empathy. Her grandfather Mike said fondly quote, she would literally give the shirt off of her

Starting point is 00:06:53 back and just go out of her way to help people. Always very conscientious of how others felt and how they were. She didn't like bullying, she would stand up for people, she was always willing to give, always willing to help. Libby attended Delphi Community Middle School and excelled in her classes, but she was especially passionate about science. As an eighth grader, she was already taking advanced placement classes from nearby Purdue University. Kelsey says that Libby aspired to be either a science teacher or a scientist. It was at Delphi Community Middle School where Libby met one of her best friends, Abby Williams. So let's get into Abby's story here.

Starting point is 00:07:36 Now Abigail Joyce Williams, who went by Abby, of course, was born on June 23rd, 2003, to her mother Anna Williams. And Anna has not publicly mentioned Abby's birth father, so it's likely that he was not in the picture. Abby was born in Susaint Marie, Michigan, and lived there until she was about preschool age when she and her mom Anna relocated to Delphi, Indiana. Like Libby, Abby also pleaded saxophone in their school's band. And she did grow up spending time between Michigan

Starting point is 00:08:10 where her extended family lived in Indiana and spent a lot of time outside doing things like hiking, camping, swimming, and riding ATVs. She loved to express herself through art and her photographs, her drawings, and paintings were hung proudly in the Williams home. So you know, she and Libby have a lot in common here. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:08:31 But her favorite thing to do was read, both for school and just for enjoyment, and her mom said that she would plow through books, competing for the highest number of books read in her language arts class, which is so awesome. Abby also loved animals, and Anna remembered fondly that Abby had found a straight cat that she convinced her mom to keep as a house pet, despite Anna's allergy to cats. So Abby named the cat Bongo, and was able to keep it. Libby and Abby, who was also an eighth grader, like I said, had a lot in common and were fast friends. Both were creative and kind and loved spending time outdoors, especially to snap pictures of nature. Both girls loved adventure and enjoyed taking trips together

Starting point is 00:09:19 with Libby's grandparents, and they spent many happy days and nights together just hanging out at each other's houses and exploring Delphi together. On the weekend before Valentine's Day in 2017, the girls had both Friday and Monday off from school. So Sunday night, February 12, they decided to have a sleep over at Libby's house. The next day, the girls asked Libby's sister Kelsey if she could take them to the hiking trails near town, but Kelsey had to work. She agreed to drop Libby and Abbey off if they could get a ride home, so Libby's dad

Starting point is 00:09:53 Derek agreed to pick them up at 3pm that day. Delphi is a pretty small town with a population of less than 3,000 people, and according to Kelsey, there's just not a whole lot to do, so the most popular attractions are the hiking trails. One trail in particular about a three-minute drive from downtown is the Monon Highbridge Trail. Monon Highbridge is an abandoned set of railroad tracks surrounded by greenery and crosses over deer creek. Now, the walk across a bridge can be a little bit scary because it's 63 feet high and at the time had no guardrail. And also one of the wooden railroad slats was missing so this made it even more dangerous.

Starting point is 00:10:35 When Abby was growing up, Anna actually forbade her from crossing it, saying that it was dangerous. And this would be Abby's first time making her way across the bridge, but this time she had Libby who had done it many times before to guide her. At 1.30pm, Kelsey dropped the girls off at the high bridge before heading to her shift at the local dairy queen. Libby told Kelsey that she loved her and that would be the last time that Kelsey would ever see her sister. Shortly after the girls were dropped off at 2. p.m., Libby posted a picture of the bridge

Starting point is 00:11:08 on Snapchat, and then a picture of Abby on the bridge behind her while making their way across it. And this, you know, along with some other things that are associated with Snapchat in the case which we're going to get into, are why the case has not only been dubbed the Delphine murders, but the Snapchat murders if you guys have heard of that. Now, less than an hour later, around 3pm, when Derek was nearing the area to pick Libby and Abby up, he called Libby to give her a heads up and received no response. Now when he arrived where they were supposed to meet and saw no sign of them,

Starting point is 00:11:46 he got out of the car and began to look around for them. 30 minutes passed without seeing or hearing from them at all, so starting to worry, he called his mother Becky and asked that she called Libby, which she did multiple times, still receiving no response. Becky then called her husband Mike at work, and he immediately raced to the area to help Derek look for the girls. Becky also called Kelsey at work to alert her of the situation, and Kelsey actually left right away to join in the search efforts. As it started to get dark, because remember it's winter, so the sun said at about 6 p.m. that night. It really said in that the girls may be in real trouble, perhaps having fallen or gotten

Starting point is 00:12:36 hurt. So as the sun went down, three hours after Derek arrived to pick them up, Becky and Mike contacted police while the rest of the family continued to comb the area. Becky finally got in touch with Anna, whose Abby's mom, after trying to reach her at work, and Anna joined them as well. But adding to the concerns was the fact

Starting point is 00:13:00 that Libby was deathly afraid of the dark. So after searching the area in vain for hours, investigators called off the search around midnight, vowing to pick it up again in the daylight. But Libby's and Abbey's friends and families stayed out all night, just not wanting to give up. The following morning, which was Tuesday, February 14, 2017, so Valentine's Day, hundreds of people flooded to the trails to help search for the missing girls. A canine unit was brought in as well as helicopters and Mike himself got in a canoe to search

Starting point is 00:13:39 deer creek, which like Heath said, that bridge that he was talking about, the scary one that's like 63 feet high, dear Creek runs under that. So, you know, very smart to check that Creek. Yeah, I mean, because they're thinking it's possible that the girls could have fallen into the water, potentially had hypothermia, or something at that point. So after a few hours, Shouts rang out that a black tennis shoe was found along the banks of the creek, and it was believed to belong to one of the girls. One investigator picked up a set of footprints leading away from the high bridge and followed them into the brush.

Starting point is 00:14:16 A short while later, Mike over her chatter on the police walkie talkies that Libby and Abbey may have been found. At 12.15 pm that day, about a half mile or 8 tenths of a kilometer away from the bridge, and a mile or 1.6 kilometers east to town, the bodies of 14 year old Libby German and 13 year old Abbey Williams were finally found. Which is crazy, I mean this happened less than 24 hours after they went missing, which can't be said for a lot of other cases we cover. But now they have to figure out what happened to them. Exactly. At 150 p.m. that afternoon, the Delphi Police Chief, along with the Indiana State Police Public Information Officer and the Carroll County Sheriff,

Starting point is 00:15:03 Toby Lazinby, held a press conference to announce the discovery of the two bodies, although they did not confirm the remains to be those of Libyan Abbey until the following day. As the family is reeled from the devastating news, the Small Delphi Police Department prepared for what they knew was going to be an extremely difficult investigation. The small town almost never faced homicides, rapes, or other violent crimes, so they called in reinforcements such as the Indiana State Police and the FBI to assist in the investigation. The FBI established a tip line right off the bat and began offering a $25,000 reward.

Starting point is 00:15:43 Now Indiana Packers, which is a meatpacking corporation based in Delphi, put up a $25,000 reward. Now, Indiana Packers, which is a meat-packing corporation based in Delphi, put up a $10,000 reward and multiple local businesses and families also contributed, bringing this fund up to $100,000. Which is amazing because remember, like Keith said earlier, this is a town of 3,000 people. So to raise $100,000 is insane. Yeah, it's incredible. And also also another really great thing here was that a former punter for the Indianapolis

Starting point is 00:16:09 Colts Pat McAfee and also billionaire Colts owner Jim Urse match those donations and that brought the total up to $200,000. Then in 2021, an anonymous donor donated another $100,000, bringing the total reward fund up to $325K. The day after the bodies were found, which was February 15, 2017, an autopsy was performed on the girls in Terra Hotel, Indiana, which is about two hours away. The results were immediately sealed to discourage false confessions or tips and have still not been released to the public and it's been six years now.

Starting point is 00:16:54 Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter stated firmly, quote, the person that killed those two little girls knows how he did it. We will not talk about how they were murdered. And there was immediately a struggle to collect evidence outdoors in the midst of the Indiana winter. But something interesting is that the land on which the girls were found was actually private property, which kind of gave investigators a logical starting point. The owner of this farmland, who is 77-year-old Ronald Logan, had lived on the property for most

Starting point is 00:17:28 of his life. Now while police were very quick to question him, he's staunchly protested against having had anything to do with the murders. Saying quote, something happened here like this in my backyard. I just can't get my emotions around it. It's just crazy, it's unreal. Now, Ronald claimed that he was driving a truckload of trash to the local dump when the murders were believed

Starting point is 00:17:53 to have taken place, and that he then went to a local restaurant for some drinks. Now, he was released of suspicion, however, in a very strange twist. Ronald's license was actually suspended following a drunk driving conviction a few years prior. And because of his testimony, he was exonerated from involvement in the murders, but implicated for violating the terms of his probation and driving on a suspended license. So he kind of screwed himself there, and he did end up pleading guilty to these charges.

Starting point is 00:18:27 According to the prosecutor, quote, We allege that he violated those conditions of his probation by drinking, by having access to his vehicle which he wasn't supposed to have, and by driving while he's adjudicated as a habitual traffic violator. Ronald was sentenced to three and a half years for that infraction of which he served two years. But still, you know, that doesn't have anything to do with the girls' murders. Police really do not think he's involved. So when investigators found Libby's cell phone discarded in the brush, they found the clue

Starting point is 00:19:01 that may be what ultimately solves the case. A video. On the same day, investigators officially announced the victims of the double homicide to be Libby German and Abbey Williams. They released a grainy picture of a man that they believed had something to do with it. He could be seen walking along the Monon Highge in the daylight, and investigators asked anyone who was on or near the trail between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. if they had any recollection of coming across this man. Police did not, however, identify where the picture came from

Starting point is 00:19:37 until later. It had come from Libby herself. Libby had the foresight to record a man who would appear to be following them, and this video was discovered on her phone later. At some point after posting two pictures to Snapchat, Libby likely feeling threatened by this man started recording. Recorded at 2.13pm, the full-length video includes Libby and Abby discussing what the police referred to as Stuff Girls Talk About, but then their conversation shifts to talking about the man that was

Starting point is 00:20:09 in the background. Please pause that Libby recorded the video from the south-eastern side of the bridge, looking towards the northwestern side of the bridge. The grainy picture was a screenshot from the video itself, a man who came to be known as the bridge guy, who, basically if you've been following this case, you know who bridge guy is. But obviously if you don't, this is who he is and we're going to post this screenshot on all of our socials for you guys to see.

Starting point is 00:20:36 And rightfully so, investigators praised her for this move, which was a huge step forward in this investigation. The Carol County Sheriff Toby Lisenby said, quote, I still give her so much credit to this investigation. The Carroll County Sheriff, Toby Lisenby, said, quote, I still give her so much credit to this day. I've been at this for 30 plus years, so it's amazing what this young lady did. And Kelsey, her sister, said proudly, quote,

Starting point is 00:20:57 Libby was the smartest girl I'd ever met. She was so observant and watched her surroundings. She knew that something was going to happen. The video depicted an older white male wearing a blue jacket, jeans, and a dark hat walking with both hands in his pockets behind the girls on this high bridge. And billboards went up around town featuring the photo of the girls alongside the picture of the man on Libby's phone believed to be their killer. While the investigation was in full force, the families were left to mourn the lives that

Starting point is 00:21:30 Libby and Abby would never go on to live. A massive memorial was held at the girls' middle school, which took place on February 18, 2017, just five days after the murders, where hundreds of people gathered outside the school to remember Libby and Abby. Abby's mom Anna remembers it as standing room only, and in addition to the school ceremony, a memorial motorcycle ride through Delphi was held with more than 3,000 riders, that's more people than live in Delphi. Each driver and writer donated to participate,

Starting point is 00:22:09 and the proceeds went toward Abby and Libby's families. On February 22, 2017, alongside the picture that was already released, police put out an audio clip also taken from Libby's cell phone while it had been in her pocket. Now, it's a recording of an adult man calmly saying what sounds like guys down the hill. And because that was released,

Starting point is 00:22:35 we're gonna play it for you guys right now. We're gonna play it a few times since obviously it's very short. Now this was believed to be a story of a man who was born in the 19th century. Now this was believed to be the man in the video instructing the girls to hike down the steep hill toward Dear Creek. When police spoke with others who were on the trails that day, multiple people reported having seen the man captured in the video.

Starting point is 00:23:05 So three different witnesses reported seeing a car parked nearby as well, but unfortunately they couldn't agree on what kind of car it was, which is fair because obviously they wouldn't have known at the time to pay attention to something like that. But it also does make the investigation a bit harder. Of course, and one source did say that it was a PT cruiser. Another one said that it was an electric smart car, and then another said that it had been in SUV. So obviously it is.

Starting point is 00:23:35 So obviously it is. So obviously it is. So obviously it is. So obviously it is. Yeah, nobody knows. However, investigators combined all three accounts and believed it to be something along the lines of a 2016 Ford Focus.

Starting point is 00:23:49 But the accounts about his car agreed on one thing. It had been parked in a very odd manner. It was left near an old child protective services building, but it had been backed up to the building as if maybe to conceal its license plate. One woman out walking claims that she saw a man who fit the description, a man in a blue jacket and jeans, who was covered in mud and blood, claiming it looked as if he had just gotten into a fight. Another witness claimed that she passed a man on the trail and said, high only to be met with a glare.

Starting point is 00:24:27 This witness also claimed that this man had been wearing a black or dark blue jacket, a hat, and jeans, which I think in general would stand out, especially the jeans on a hiking trail. You know, people don't usually do that. So this seems like it would be the same guy just based on that, you know what I mean? Yeah, exactly. It's probably not a ton of guys in jeans walking on that trail at that very time. Totally. And if you've seen the picture of this guy, it's pretty noticeable. Yeah, he's he's he's pretty distinct, I guess. Yeah, I would say. And if you haven't seen that picture, make sure to go look at it. So she also said that his hands

Starting point is 00:25:02 had been in his pockets, which is what somebody else said as well, and like we saw in the photo, and that he was walking with purpose. She hadn't gotten a very long look at his face, but described him as a white man of average height. Now unfortunately, despite a hefty reward, audio and video footage and witnesses. No suspects emerged. In July of 2017, police released a sketch based on the video from Libby's phone. Now the man in question was described as a white male of average height and between 180 and 220 pounds. Tens of thousands of new tips poured in based on this sketch, and one tip led them to a man named Daniel Nations, who had a shockingly long list of offenses. In 2002, then 17-year-old Daniel's mother was murdered by his own brother, an incident which he claims

Starting point is 00:26:25 he never recovered from. A few years after that, Daniel was caught fondling himself in public and was put on a sex offender's registry, which required him to check in with the sex and violent offender registry every week for the rest of his life. In the next few years, he was arrested on multiple drug and traffic charges, and then in 2015, he was caught in the women's restroom of a gas station, secretly watching women, and again, publicly fondling himself. Now later that same year in front of his young child, he punched his wife in the face, which broke her nose.

Starting point is 00:27:03 What do we call guys like this? Piece of shit. So he did actually serve jail time for this crime, but he was bunched his wife in the face, which broke her nose. So he did actually serve jail time for this crime, but he was released after just 99 days. After a few more drug and traffic-related charges, Daniel, his pregnant wife and their son, who had been living in Indiana at the time of Libby and Abby's murders, wound up in Colorado. Now his brother, of course not the one who had murdered their mom, had been killed in a fight in Colorado Springs, and Daniel claimed later that he was going there to exact vigilante justice.

Starting point is 00:27:35 But when the killer confessed and was put in prison before Daniel could do anything, he had no clear plan. The family was homeless and basically transient at this point, living intense and out of their car at the time. When they set up camp near Monument Colorado, local police began receiving complaints that a man was chasing cyclists with a hatchet. In September, Daniel was pulled over in connection with these threats and a search of the vehicle did reveal the hatchet as well as a rifle which he possessed illegally.

Starting point is 00:28:06 And he had also been missing his weekly sex offender registry checks. Now Daniel was arrested and on September 29th, 2017, a tipster called him in as a potential suspect in the Delphine murders. So Indian estate troopers made their way down to Colorado to question him, but Daniel had an airtight alibi. He had been with his wife at a prenatal appointment at the time of the murders. Another tip was about a man named Kevin Sellers

Starting point is 00:28:35 from Logan's Point, Indiana, which is about 25 minutes from Delphi, and this guy happened to already be a person of interest in another homicide case. So Kevin, who was 39 years old at the time of the Delphine murders, was brought in for questioning in August of 2017. So months after the murders, and this is also after police received a tip about him. So in 2007, about 10 years earlier, Kevin Sellers, who lived with his 50-year-old uncle David, came home to find his uncle dead from a gunshot wound.

Starting point is 00:29:12 Kevin called it a suicide, but based on the pattern of the blood spatter, investigators really had their doubts. But there was no arrest in the case for a decade until Kevin was brought in for questioning in connection with the Delphi murders. Now while Kevin bore a striking resemblance to the man in Libby's video, there was no evidence connecting him to the murders of Libby and Abby.

Starting point is 00:29:41 Police did, however, take that opportunity to really pressure him again in the matter of his uncle's death, just based on the fact that Kevin was the sole beneficiary in David's estate. And shortly after they began their line of questioning, David snapped and said, quote, I surrender. So he was arrested and charged with the murder of his uncle and sentenced to 45 years in prison. And after none of the tips amounted to anything,

Starting point is 00:30:12 authorities decided to release another police sketch. So this is interesting because if he's not connected to the Delphi murders, you know, it's like they, they solved the different murder. Yeah, I mean the whatto crazy piece of this story. Right. So on April 19th 2019, over two years after the girl's murders, a new composite sketch was revealed and it looked nothing like the first.

Starting point is 00:30:39 This sketch instead of being inspired by the video from Libby's phone was compiled from eyewitness accounts of those who believe that they saw the culprit on the day of the murders. This is kind of, I don't know, I have mixed feelings about this because obviously, it's important to take what eyewitnesses saw, and we will say, of course, if you're not able to look at Bridge Guy in the picture of him,

Starting point is 00:30:59 it's far away, it's like pixelated a little bit. It's really hard to tell what this guy's face looks like because he's wearing a hat, he has his jacket like zipped up I think. So you can't really see his neck, like you just see his face and he's looking down. So it's really hard to see what his face looks like, but I also feel like that is literally a picture of him.

Starting point is 00:31:23 Yeah, true. And also, going back to the eyewitness accounts, like they weren't even able to clearly identify what kind of car he was driving. Yeah, so maybe they weren't paying very much attention to what his face looks like. You know, of course they are trying here, and I do think it's fair to release a second sketch.

Starting point is 00:31:44 It is commendable for sure. Yeah, or to release a sketch, but if it looks nothing like the guy in the photo, you know, I don't know. But I do, again, want to say that the photo is very blurry, so I am glad they did this composite sketch anyway. Yeah, definitely. You know, the stark contrast between the two images was pretty shocking, and the public couldn't figure out why it was being released then when the image had been rendered in February of 2017.

Starting point is 00:32:12 But unfortunately, the new sketch did little for this case. Libby's and Abby's families were made to wait another three more years for a clear suspect. In May of 2022, a podcast called The Murder Sheet Podcast, who were covering the case, published a nine-page search warrant detailing the findings of the FBI at the crime scene. And I remember at the time this was pretty controversial because it was information that was not supposed to be released to the public. But the document was confirmed by police to be authentic. One disturbing detail revealed that the girls had been posed like mannequins after their deaths.

Starting point is 00:32:53 Now according to the document, quote, a large amount of blood was lost by the victims at the crime scene. Because of the nature of the victims' wounds, it is nearly certain that the perpetrator of the crime would have gotten blood on his body or person. The document stated that two items of clothing from one of the girls were never found, while the rest were recovered. Some, if not all of the clothing was found away from the bodies in a nearby creek. And it's not clear whether they are believed to have undressed before or been undressed after the murders. I think we can all go ahead and say that we doubt they undressed themselves, but it's

Starting point is 00:33:35 still unclear if it was done before or after they were deceased. Now the document also confirmed that the video from liby's phone was forty three seconds long and that police were withholding the rest of it from the public which again is fair they're allowed to do that they're trying to keep the integrity of this investigation yeah this is a criminal investigation

Starting point is 00:33:57 now the search warrant was actually for the property of uh... ronald logon the guy who's property they were found on and paint a less innocent portrait of him than was previously reported, but we will get into that. Now in October of 2022, obviously last October, and a rest in this case was finally made. 50-year-old Delphi resident Richard Allen had actually already been interviewed multiple times in connection with the murders and even admitted that he was on the trail on February 13th, 2017, the day that they were also on the trail and the day that they were murdered.

Starting point is 00:34:37 In the probable cause of a David released after Richard's arrest, an investigator statement read, quote, Mr. Allen was on the trail between 1.30 and 3.30 pm. He parked at the old Farm Bureau building and walked to the new Freedom Bridge. While at the Freedom Bridge, he saw three females. He noted one was taller and had brown or black hair. He did not remember the description nor did he speak with them. He walked from the Freedom Bridge to the High Bridge. He did not see anybody, although he stated he was watching a stock ticker on his phone as he walked.

Starting point is 00:35:19 He stated there were vehicles parked at the High Bridge Trailhead. However, he did not pay attention to them. He did not take any photos or video. Now Richard also admitted to having been wearing jeans and a blue or black car heart brand jacket. He said he may have been wearing it as well, but he couldn't remember. At this time, Richard owned two cars. So one of them was a great pickup truck, and the other was a 2016 Ford Focus. Ah. Yeah, that's the Maken model, which investigators suspected had been parked by that, you know, the old child protective services building per eyewitnesses.

Starting point is 00:36:02 Potentially trying to hide its license plate. Potentially, yes. So prior to his arrest, police also interviewed Richard's wife Kathy, who claimed he owned multiple guns and knives. Obviously, that doesn't automatically make him a killer, but that is something that she said. And while searching his residence on October 13, 2022, investigators removed multiple items,

Starting point is 00:36:25 including at least one jacket and a pair of boots, and a six-hour model P22640 caliber pistol. So, investigators knew something that they had kept close to their vest until that point, which is that between the girl's bodies, an unspent bullet still in its casing had been found. The affidavit explained, quote,

Starting point is 00:36:50 The laboratory determined the unspent round, located within two feet of victim 2's body, had been cycled through Richard M. Allen's 6-hour model P226. When confronted with the findings, Richard confirmed that he owned the gun and that he had since 2001. He didn't have an explanation for how a bullet that had passed through his gun wound up at the crime scene, but continued to proclaim his innocence. That was enough doubt on behalf of investigators and on October 28th, 2022, Richard Allen was arrested and charged with the murders of Libby German and Abbey Williams. And the speculation now was that he was believed to have been possibly concealing a gun in

Starting point is 00:37:36 his pocket as he was approaching the girls. Hence why his hands were in his pockets. Right. So police declined to release the entire 43 second video, but in the portion of the video that was trimmed off, one of the girls can reportedly be heard saying, quote, gun. The small town of Delphi was just shell-shocked that one of their own had been implicated in the town's darkest crime. Libby's sister Kelsey said, quote,

Starting point is 00:38:01 If you weren't from the area, you wouldn't know the trails were here. It's hard for me to imagine that someone I've grown up with, someone who grew up in the same place that I've grown up in, could do something like that. Carrie, Libby's mom, was also very disturbed by this development saying quote, it just seemed logical that they had some kind of local ties at the very least. I didn't expect him to literally be living under everyone's noses. And honestly, it's just sickening

Starting point is 00:38:29 how close he really was to these crimes. Because get this, Richard, who worked at the local CVS as a pharmacy technician, even printed photos of the girls during the search for their killer and declined to charge Libby's grandma Becky for the cost of the pictures. There is a picture printed in an article of Richard posing at a local bar in front of the composite police sketch hanging on the wall behind him, which is so eerie to think

Starting point is 00:38:58 about later. The owner of that bar, who considered Richard somewhat of a regular, remembered him being kind and soft-spoken. The two men had talked at length about the murders, how tragic they were, and how badly they both felt for the victims and their families. Richard has two children of his own. In January of this year, Richard attended a hearing in hopes of moving his trial out of Delphi, because his lawyers were concerned that jurors plucked from the small community would be biased.

Starting point is 00:39:29 But his request was denied by the judge. In the courtroom, Richard could be seen malding, I love you, to two women in the room, believed to be his wife and his adult daughter. And definitely go look at the photos that we posted of Richard, because I'd really like to know what people think obviously This is a photo of him years after the murders took place But I don't personally think he looks like either composite sketch Which doesn't mean that it's not him but I think looking at the sketches and then looking at a photo of him

Starting point is 00:39:57 It's I wouldn't have known that this could be him based on that Sure and the composite sketches could be off slightly. Of course, but you know, usually like sometimes we'll see in cases where there is a composite and then they catch the guy and it's like holy shit, same exact person. Right, but we've also seen cases where it's the complete opposite

Starting point is 00:40:18 and they're like, you're like, oh my God, he looks nothing like that composite. Exactly, so if Richard is actually behind these murders, in my opinion, he looks nothing like what we've all thought that he looked like all these years. But let us know what you guys think. So while they were, of course, relieved in a sense, the girls' families knew that there was a very long road ahead of them. Libby's mom, again, Carrie, released this statement after the arrest.

Starting point is 00:40:44 Quote, Today isn't what wasn't said. It's about what was. Richard M. Allen has been arrested and charged with the murders of Libby and Abbey. I have begged, pleaded and prayed to hear these words for nearly six years, but nothing could prepare me for the feeling of sitting there and actually hearing them. To say it's been an emotional roller coaster would be a great understatement. That being said, I know that this is just the beginning. Over the next few weeks, months, and maybe even years, the story will finally be told.

Starting point is 00:41:20 Justice will finally be served. Hopefully, questions will be answered, and we as a family and community can begin to heal. I am so very grateful for all of the loving support and kind words from friends, family, and even strangers. Many days, that is all that has kept me going, and for that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Please continue to lift all of us in prayer.

Starting point is 00:41:46 Send good vibes and positivity because we are truly going to need it. This is not a time for victim blaming or shaming. There's no need in vigilante justice. Please keep in mind that we have a justice system for a reason. Everyone has a right to a fair trial and is considered innocent until proven guilty. Remember that the bridge guy has a family and they are not responsible for his actions. They are in fact also his victims. I also want to thank all the reporters, podcasters, and other news and social media outlets for keeping our girl's story relevant

Starting point is 00:42:21 and in the public eye. While sometimes it's been painful, I am grateful for you. Justice is finally coming, Libs. It's gonna be a long and bumpy road, but I'm ready for the journey. Maybe then we can have some peace. I love you most, pinky promise. After his arrest, Richard's neighbors noticed police digging in his yard.

Starting point is 00:42:43 And it was later revealed that they were digging up the Allen family's deceased cat, whose hair was allegedly found on one of the victims. Now while it seems likely that Richard was involved, it's also possible that he was not acting alone. According to the search warrant for Ronald Logan's property, where the girls were discovered, Ronald had actually asked someone to lie for him about his whereabouts that day. That never looks good.

Starting point is 00:43:08 No, it does not. And contrary to the original story that he presented to detectives, which landed him in prison, the warrant alleged that Ronald had asked someone to drive him to an aquarium store in Lafayette, Indiana, on the afternoon of the murders. But the document alleged, quote, these statements were found to be false and designed to intentionally deceive law enforcement officers. The warrant read that Ronald had asked his cousin

Starting point is 00:43:35 to be his alibi for that afternoon and to tell inquiring officers that they were together, running the errand to the aquarium store. His cousin driving because his license was, was of course suspended like we mentioned earlier. The warrant recommended that he be considered further, saying, quote, based on investigators' experience, it is reasonable to believe that the creation of an alibi prior to the discovery of a crime indicates culpability or knowledge of that crime. The document also stated that his voice was not inconsistent with that of the recording from Libby's phone.

Starting point is 00:44:12 And not inconsistent is not a huge thing to say because it's really difficult. Obviously, they have a longer version of a video than we do, so they might have audio that we have not heard, and all we have heard is down the hill, which is really hard to determine whose voice that could or couldn't be, because it's muffled, and it's three words. Exactly, and this is actually what the FBI agent wrote. He said, quote, I believe there is probable cause to believe that Ronald Logan has committed

Starting point is 00:44:45 the crime of murder and evidence of that can be found on Ronald Logan's property. However, though his property was searched and he was questioned, he was never formally considered a suspect in the Delphi murders. It's possible that he asked his cousin to cover for him with the phony aquarium story simply because he was violating his probation. But Ronald Logan died on January 24th, 2022, reportedly of COVID-19, so unfortunately we may never know which version of his accounts were true or if he was involved in the murders. Both state police and the families of the girls declined to comment

Starting point is 00:45:25 on the release of the document. But another person at one time suspected of involvement is 28-year-old Kegan Klein. I just want to mention that I feel like most news reports that we listen to in watch said Kegan Klein, but it's spelled K-E-G-A-N, which I know to be said as Keegan. That sounds like Keegan to me. Other people have said Keegan. I feel like mostly we're hearing Keegan, but I'm gonna say Keegan because that's what it looks like to me,

Starting point is 00:45:54 but I'm just gonna mention that because I don't know which one is actually true. So anyway, Keegan is originally from Kokomo in Diena, which is about 45 minutes away from Delphi. And he was found using fake social media profiles originally from Kokomo in Dianna, which is about 45 minutes away from Delphi, and he was found using fake social media profiles to obtain photos from underage girls. Behind the mask of social media, Keegan used stolen photos to pose that's an actor and model named Anthony Schatz and a teenage girl named Emily Ann. He had close to 100 photos and videos of underage girls

Starting point is 00:46:28 in his possession. So on August 28, 2020, after years of this disgusting behavior, he was finally arrested and charged with 30 counts of obstruction of justice, exploitation of a child and possession of child pornography, or as it should be called, child sexual abuse material. Now he remains in prison to this day, and he was connected to the case when he admitted to messaging Libby multiple times from one of his fake accounts.

Starting point is 00:47:03 They'd even talked on Snapchat the day she disappeared and allegedly had plans to meet up the following day. However, while he's definitely guilty of some very despicable things, there is no evidence tying him to the Delphi murders. His home was searched and nothing was found that would implicate him in the girl's deaths. Libyan Abbey's case has often been compared to another case that we've actually covered, which are the murders of cousins Elizabeth Collins and Lyric Koch-Murassy, which we covered in episode 209 of Going West.

Starting point is 00:47:40 These girls were abducted in 2012 in Evansdale, Iowa while on a bike ride and found seven months later in a rural wooded area. I think we actually mentioned Delphi, the Delphi murders in that episode that feels like forever ago now, but I'm almost positive we did. So Evansdale is about a six hour drive from Delphi, so not far at all, and is a similarly small town and was also rocked by the shocking double murders. And their case remains unsolved to this day. But due to the similarities of the circumstances, many have posed the theory that the cases

Starting point is 00:48:19 are actually connected, but law enforcement has not been able to substantiate this theory. However, the theory did forge a connection between two sets of grieving families. In 2020 Anna Williams, Abby's mom, took a trip to Iowa to meet Elizabeth and Lyric's families. She said later, quote, "'There girls were younger than ours, but their story is very close to our hearts. There were similarities. It was brought up early on and I decided I had the time off to do it and I made the trip to Iowa and got to meet their families and be with them at their events.

Starting point is 00:48:57 It was good to be with other folks who know what you're going through and it's been longer for them than it has for us, and their case is also unsolved. Seeing the crime scene from the Evansdale murders, Anna said, quote, �I thought I was looking at our girls. Both sets of girls were even found lying in the brush near a creek. Anna muses that the whole experience has been a difficult lesson in empathy, and that while meeting others who have lost children can be comforting, it's also incredibly heavy. She said quote, it's really hard right off the bat to meet other folks who are going

Starting point is 00:49:35 through a similar situation. You really don't want to deal with somebody else's things. Everyone is different. It's not that you don't care. It's just overwhelming. You're trying to deal with your own self. But as time goes by, things just pull on your heart. Different times, different places, different people. You just want to drop everything and go because you know there are people there who are going through what you've gone through. I think sometimes the hard part about that too is that it just keeps happening.

Starting point is 00:50:09 There's always something that's happening and you feel helpless in your own situation sometimes. I just try to do something with that and be available and help where I can. Anna believes Abby's legacy lives on through the charity work that Anna has done since losing her daughter, and the way she's been able to connect with and comfort other grieving parents. She also said, quote, we're a new family now. It's a different family. Other folks who have gone through that, they're part of our family too.

Starting point is 00:50:40 We know how they're feeling. They know how we're feeling, and you don't have to talk about it. They know we know. Another murder that has drawn comparisons is the murder of a teenage girl named Jordan Sofer, who was 18 years old and from Wabash, Indiana, which is about an hour away from Delphi. As a 14 year old, Jordan was removed from an abusive home and placed in foster care, and she was taken in by foster parents Linda and Robert.

Starting point is 00:51:10 Now Jordan initially had a very difficult transition as one can imagine, and Linda remembers her struggling with night terrors and, rightfully so, massive trust issues. But she was working through them alongside her foster parents, and in 2004, she was officially adopted by Linda and Robert Sofer. When Jordan was a junior in high school, against her parents' wishes, she dropped out of school, although she did say she planned on returning at some point and also had dreams of attending college someday. In April of 2006, newly 18-year-old Jordan got in a fight with her mother about a new relationship that she was in

Starting point is 00:51:52 that her mom Linda apparently disapproved of. So Jordan left her parents house to stay with friends, although she would still stop by to visit on occasion. On May 23, 2006, she went over to the Sofers house, her parents house, to see her dad, and then left for the day, knowing that she had a shift at the restaurant where she worked. That evening, her manager called her mom Linda to inform her that Jordan had never shown up for her shift. The following morning, still with no word from Jordan, her parents reported her missing. And three years later, in 2009, her body was discovered in the woods outside of town

Starting point is 00:52:36 by a mushroom forager, and her murder has not been solved. So at the time of her murder, Richard Allen, again the man who has been arrested in connection to the murders of Libyan Abbey, was employed at a CVS in Mexico, Indiana, which is just about 20 minutes away from Wabash where Jordan lived, and he moved to Delphi shortly after. So detectives did investigate this link, but but said quote, it was something that was brought to our attention and it's something we looked into, but we don't think there's a connection at this time. But it is pretty interesting that he was living so close when that happened. Yeah, I mean if he is involved in Libyan Abbey's murders, then we know he's capable of such horrific acts, you know, against young women or young girls, so definitely possible.

Starting point is 00:53:30 But at this time, obviously, we just don't know. In 2021, a beautiful park years in the making was unveiled that dubbed the Abbey and Libby Memorial Park. The park boasts baseball fields in a picnic area with concession stands and amphitheater a walking trail and more. With donations, fundraisers and grants, the families were able to pour over a million dollars into the space. Kelsey has been busy since the tragedy that took her beloved sister six years ago and after graduating high school, Kelsey enrolled at Ball State University,

Starting point is 00:54:06 majoring in communications, but she decided to shift her focus towards a greater good. She transferred to Purdue University, where Libby herself used to take advanced placement classes. Kelsey majored in psychology, minoring, and forensic Science. She runs pages on both Instagram and Twitter dedicated to updates about her sister's case, as well as amplifying other cases that need attention. She's also began attending conventions such as CrimeCon, which we actually saw her at in Las Vegas, to share her sister's story, and also to fight to make sure true crime space is more ethical. While at Purdue, she gave a lecture

Starting point is 00:54:45 about this, giving a harrowing look at the reality of losing a loved one in a brutal murder. She noted that journalists, True Crime enthusiast, and armchair detectives glorify the horrific details of these crimes, forgetting that there was a human who was a victim, and that the sensationalizing only hurts the morning loved ones more. Kelsey remembers that the media didn't even wait 24 hours after Libby's murder before contacting her family for the story, saying, quote, they repeatedly call you every single day, which is okay, we get that they need a story. But the day after you find out somebody in your family is murdered,

Starting point is 00:55:25 that's not exactly what you want to be doing. She also noted that in many interviews that she and her family conducted, hoping to get the word out, they were basically talked over and barely able to speak. While crusading for Libby at a convention, Kelsey connected with the sister of a murder victim claimed by the Golden State Killer, remembering quote, she looked at me, my first day of crime con and said, We're here for you. And no matter how long you have to wait, you're not going to have to wait 42 years." Richard Allen has entered a plea of not guilty, and his lawyers have proclaimed that he has

Starting point is 00:56:03 quote nothing to hide. His bail hearing has been pushed back multiple times, but for now, it's set for June 15, 2023, so in a few months from now. So, if you'd like to follow along with and support Kelsey's quest for justice for her sister, you can follow her on Instagram and Twitter, which is at Liberty G, underscore sister. If you have any information about the murders of Libby German and Abby Williams, you can email the designated tip line at Abby and Libby tip at cacosrf.com or call the FBI tip hotline at 844-459-5786 or lastly call the Carroll County Sheriff's Office at 765-564-2413 Thank you so much everybody for listening to this episode of Going West. Yes, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode and on Friday we'll have an all new case for you guys to dive into.

Starting point is 00:57:19 This is such a difficult case because it's so captivating in the way that these two amazing young girls lost their lives seemingly so brutally from what we know and the search was so intense. So many people got involved, so many people know about this story and now an arrest has been made but it's hard to even feel confident about anything because there's still so much information that hasn't been released. So all we can hope is that they have the right guy and that he's going to confess and actually give these families peace and justice. Yeah, that's what I was going to say, you know, because there hasn't been a whole lot of information released about Richard Allen and his involvement, I'm interested to see where the trial goes and

Starting point is 00:58:02 what information they actually do have to basically convict them. Yeah, and what evidence led them to his arrest? What exact evidence connected to the case? Because so many details from the crime scene more than I've seen in any other case that we've covered, I think, so much of that information was not released. So hopefully, like I said, they've got the right guy. And once he finally does go to trial,

Starting point is 00:58:28 we'll do an update episode and we'll all be talking about it, I'm sure. Also, again, please make sure that you go follow Kelsey on social media. She has the most recent updates about the case and she can keep you guys connected. Absolutely. So thank you guys so much for tuning into this episode. Don't forget to share and we'll see you guys connected. Absolutely, so thank you guys so much for tuning into this episode.

Starting point is 00:58:45 Don't forget to share, and we'll see you next time. Alright guys, so for everybody out there in the world, don't be a stranger. 1.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5%

Starting point is 00:59:18 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% you

Going West: True Crime - The Delphi Murders // 285

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