The Delphi murders of two young teenagers, Abigail Williams and Liberty German, have haunted the nation for nearly two years.
The bodies of Libby, 14,and Abby, 13, were found on Valentine's Day —Feb. 14, 2017 —a day after they went for a walk in the woods on theDelphi Historic Trails in Carroll County, Indiana.
Delphi murders update:New sketch of killer, video from Libby's phone released
Since then, police have analyzed tens of thousands of tipsand conducted multiplenews conferences. Hundreds of officers have worked on the case. It has been featured on national TV programs, including"Dr. Phil" and "The Dr. Oz Show."
But, so far, no arrests have been made.
Here are some of thequestions that remain:
When did Abby and Libby die?
The girls were dropped off near the Monon High Bridge, just east of Delphi, at about 1p.m. on Feb. 13, 2017. They were supposed to be picked up at the same spot by a family member at around 3 p.m.
But Abby and Libby never returned.
They were reported missing sometime after 4 p.m. that day.
Searches were conducted that evening and the next morning, before the girls' bodies were discovered shortly after noontime on Feb. 14,about 50 feet fromDeer Creek and a half mile east of the bridge.
Law-enforcement authorities have not spoken about the estimated time when Abby and Libby are believed to have died — and they likely never will, unless there is an arrest.
"Somebody else out there knows," said Sgt. Kim Riley of the Lafayette Post of the Indiana State Police. But Rileydeclined to release any of that information.
Delphi murders: How were they killed?
There also has been no official word from law enforcement about the details of their deaths.
Autopsies were conducted, but neither the coroner, Delphi police, Carroll County Sheriff's Office, Indiana State Police or FBIhave officially revealed informationaboutthe cause of death or manner in which the teens were killed.
Carroll County Sheriff Tobe Leazenby and Riley have been active in answering questions from the media about the case.
But not about the cause of death.
Law-enforcement officials in this case have been tight-lipped throughout the investigation on key details such as this. Riley explained their reticence this way.
"We don't want to put too much information out," he said. "If and when we catch the person or persons, we want to make sure that we know that when we ask these questions, we know that (the answers are) coming from that person's mind — not from what they've read or heard on the news."
"It's basically for the integrity of the case," he added.
Have any suspects been arrested?
No. Law-enforcement authorities have conducted interviewsover the past two years with more than 1,000 people, Riley said, but none haveled to an arrest.
Some Delphi-area residents as well asmen arrested elsewhere on unrelated crimeshave been interviewed, but no one has yet been named a suspect.
"We have talked to well over 1,100 people. That includes persons of interest, that includes anybody andeverybody that's involved in this case. Iftheir name has been turned in, we've talked or attempted to talk to 99.9 percent of them."
Amid the long wait, stories have cropped up on social media and in the mainstream media about possible police interest in suspects in unrelated cases who resemble a police sketch of the Delphi killer. Many times, photos of those suspects have been published next to the police sketch of the Delphi suspect.
State Police Superintendent Doug Carter and others have repeatedly asked the public and media to not speculate about the investigation, but to no avail.
Riley said such speculation isn't helpful. "That actually hurt us," he said, "because people then kind of lose interest. They say 'Well, it looks like they found him.' "
Riley said there have been more than 38,000 tips to police about this case, and he added that "close to 100 percent" have been vetted.
Is there more than one killer?
In news conferences on the Delphi slayings, law-enforcement authorities have seemed to focus on searching for one, as-yet unknown man.
But Riley said that's not necessarily the case.
"There's still a possibility there may be more than one suspect," he said. "We have not narrowed it down to how many people have been involved in this."
What evidence existsabout the killer?
According to an FBI description, the suspected killer is awhite man who weighs between 180 and 200 pounds. He stands between 5 feet, 6 inches tall and 5 feet, 8 inches tall, and was wearing blue jeans, a blue jacket or coatand a hoodie.
Police released a grainy image of the manon Feb. 15, 2017, the day after the girls' bodies were found, but they would not initially reveal the source. A week later, on Feb. 22, they also released an audio recording of a man's voice saying "Down the hill." Theyconfirmed at that time that both the image and recording were retrieved from Libby's smartphone, which was recoveredat the scene of the slayings.
Delphi murders:What we know nearly two years after the slayings of Abby and Libby
In July 2017, police released acomposite drawing based on the testimony of eyewitnesseswho saw a man walking near the bridge on the Delphi Historic Trails at about the time the girls are believed to have disappeared.
"Preliminary evidence has led investigators to believe the person, in the distributed photo, is suspected of having participated in the murders of Abigail Williams and Liberty German," police said in a news release accompanying the sketch.
New sketch of suspect is released
On April 22, 2019, State Police did release a new police sketch of the suspect; in this sketch the suspect looks to be younger than the original sketch released in 2017.
Police at that time also released a longer version of the video and audiothat had been recoveredfrom German's phone.
Carter said new information leads investigators to believe that the killer is from Delphi. They believe he either still lives and works in Delphi, or frequently visits.
The killer is thoughtto be between the ages of 18 and 40, police now say, but may appear to be younger than his true age.
Was DNA found at the crime scene?
Police aren't saying.
Indiana State Police officials have not confirmed yet whether they have DNA samples that could lead to a possible suspect or suspects in the Delphi case.
However, a new state law, which took effect on Jan. 1, 2018, could help in the case. Now DNA samples can be collected from anyone accused of a felony; before that, policecould only collect samples from someone already convicted of a crime.
Is this a cold case?
The head of the Indiana State Police says no.
At a news conference on Feb. 13, 2018, one year after the girls' disappearance, State Police Superintendent Doug Carter asked the media to "keep this front and center."
"We cannot allowevil toprevail," he said, addingthat the investigation will proceed without regard to moneyor hours spent on the case, as long as Gov. Eric Holcomb allows it to continue.However, he declined to answer any specific questions about details or progress of the investigation, a pattern which law-enforcement officials investigating the slayings have followed all along.
"Ourcommitment is longstanding and it's real," Carter said of the Delphi case. "We are not going away.
"There is this notion that this is cold. It is not cold. This is not going to be cold."
How much time and money has been spent on the case?
Riley said he didn't know how much money has been spent, but he estimated that there have been "thousands" of hours spent by officers and detectives on the investigation.
There were about 200 officers working on the investigation soon after the killings, he said, but that has tapered off quite a bit.
"We have anywhere between five and 10 officers a day working on the case," Riley said."That includes Delphi, Carroll County, the FBI and us."
What has been the impact on officers and the community?
Riley admitted that the long investigation has been stressful for police officers, adding "it's been tough on them."
"They're still all very dedicated to getting this case solved," he said.
When asked whether he thought the public might be impatient or frustrated at the lack of an arrest two years after the killings, Riley said he didn't sense that.
"I feel they know that we're still actively working it. It's not a cold case. ... They know we're here, hopefully until it's solved."
Is there a reward?
Yes.
The Indiana State Police Alliance is collecting money for the Delphi Reward Fund which was created "for information leading to the arrest of the person or persons responsible for the homicides of Liberty German and Abigail Williams." The amount of the reward could be as much as$216,165, according to their website.
"If that tip helps toward an arrest, that person would receive the money," said Cory Martin, executive director of the alliance.
Anyone wishing to donate should write a check payable to the Indiana State Police Alliance Foundation. The phrase “Delphi Reward” should be entered on the memo line.
New donations can be mailed to this address: Indiana State Police Alliance, 1415 Shelby St., Indianapolis, IN 46203.
How can the public help?
Tips flooded in after the Delphi case was featured on national TV,and police are still accepting tips. Anyone with information about the killings or the person in the sketch should call the Delphi homicide tip line at 844-459-5786. Tips also may be emailed to abbyandlibbytip@cacoshrf.com.
Carroll County Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland said more than 38,000 tips have been received so far in the case with a dozen or more still coming in daily.
"All of the tips are greatly appreciated. … If you see something, say something," he said.
However, McLeland also said several factors make for a better tip for police.
- Name of a suspect or person of interest.
- Personal identifiers, such as tattoos or birthmarks, as well as descriptions of a potential suspect's height, weight, hair color or eye color.
- Age or birthday.
- Last known address or places where he or she frequents.
- Possible motivation for the crime.
- Connection to the case or Delphi, Indiana.
Journal and Courier reporter Ron Wilkins contributed to this article.
Call IndyStar digital producer Dwight Adams at 317-444-6532. Follow him on Twitter: @hdwightadams.
