Man In Custody In Connection To 2017 Delphi Murders: Reports

DELPHI, IND. — A 50-year-old man was arrested in connection with the 2017 disappearance and slayings of two Delphi, Indiana, teenage girls on Friday, according to multiple media reports. The arrest, expected to be officially announced Monday by Indiana State Police, could begin to bring some closure into a case that had gone cold for years.

Multiple media reports indicated that Richard Allen was booked into the Carroll County Jail in Delphi on Friday in connection with the deaths of Abigail Williams, 13, and Liberty “Libby” German, 14. A message left for officials at the sheriff’s department by Patch was not immediately returned, and no booking photo had been made available.

Fox 59 in Indianapolis reported the arrest, citing sources, and said that Allen was moved to another Indiana correctional facility on Friday for his safety.

The girls' bodies were found on Feb. 14, 2017, after they disappeared a day earlier after going hiking on the Delphi Historic Trails. The girls were last seen near the Monon High Bridge, and their bodies were found about a half-mile from the bridge, police said.

Investigators believe they had collected an important clue when the suspect’s voice was captured on Liberty’s phone, on which a man’s voice said “down the hill,” media reports indicated at the time.

In 2017, police issued a sketch of the suspect they were believed to be looking for, and the picture brought in thousands of leads in regard to the case, Patch previously reported. In 2019, a different sketch was released. Fox 59 reported this week that sources said that prosecutors in Carroll County were scheduled to hold a news conference on Monday with new developments in the case.