New Heartbreaking Updates, Facts And Theories About The Delphi Murders Of Abigail Williams And Liberty German
Such a heartbreaking tragedy.
ABC It's been 3 months since the devastating murders of Delphi teenagers Liberty 'Libby' German and Abigail 'Abby' Williams.
On Monday, February 13, 2017, the two teens went for a hike on the Monon High Bridge in Delphi, Indiana on their day off from school.
When neither girl returned to their predetermined pickup location later that afternoon, family members obviously became concerned and called law enforcement.
A search party was formed and volunteers and police searched the wooded area surrounding the bridge until slightly after midnight when the search was called off.
Police initially believed the girls were not in any danger, however the volunteers and family searched until the early morning hours.
It wasn't until the following day, February 14, the bodies of both girls were found about a half mile from the bridge just after 12:00 p.m. local time.
For a full timeline of events, click here.
This tragedy not only affected the town of about 3,000 people, but their story has gripped the entire nation.
The only clues law enforcement released to the public were still images of a man on a bridge they believe to be the murderer (or one of the murderers) taken from Libby's phone and a sound bite of the same man saying calmly, "down the hill."
With no arrests or suspects in sight, the family is forced to continue moving forward without their girls.
Liberty German's grandmother Becky Patty, 57, told ABC that they she is focusing on raising funds to build a softball field as a permanent memorial for the girls.
CourierPress (Becky and Mike Patty—Libby's grandparents)
"We lost her. We can't bring her back … Even when we find this guy, even when he is put away, that's not gonna bring Libby back. We just want to make sure those girls are remembered forever, that they didn't die in vain." She continued, "People don't let their kids play outside ... the little ones don't understand that. ... that's a hard conversation to have with a 9-year-old, to explain to them that there are bad people out there … I have faith. I have faith and I'm thankful to law enforcement, to the media, to all the private individuals helping. Between everybody, I'm confident we can catch him."
Anna Williams, 33, Abby's mother tells WLFI news that she is keeping the faith that today is the day they will catch the monster who took these girl's lives, but that she's also planning a very different life than she expected.
News.com.au (Anna and Abby Williams)
"There's a lot of things that we're not going to have anymore … There isn't going to be a prom. There aren't going to be weddings. College. Those things that you just think that you're going to be having … We have to keep saying God's got this, because if we don't, then they win … Then the ones out there that say, 'They have nothing. We're never going to find out who did this. Whoever did this is long-gone,' — they win."
Here are the FACTS of the case per law enforcement as of this writing:
1. The last photo of Abigail 'Abby' Williams was taken by Liberty 'Libby' German on Snapchat.
(Last known photo of Abigail 'Abby' Williams)
This photo was taken by Libby on the Monon High Bridge at 2:07 p.m. local time and posted to Snapchat.
When the girls failed to meet up with family at their pre-determined pick-up location at around 5:30 p.m., law enforcement was called in.
A search team worked until about midnight looking for the girls.
At the time, Carroll County Sheriff Tobe Leazenby said there was no reason to believe the girls were in danger other than exposure to the elements and the search would resume the following day.
On February 14, 2017, the bodies of the girls were found and though authorities were hesitant to confirm them as Libby and Abby, Delphi Community Schools Superintendent Gregory Briles said there would be grief counselors at the school and, “The teachers are a bit in disbelief, they’re confused. They don’t know how they got to this point or what may have happened. They are, like our students grieving right now.”
2. The man on the bridge is currently the suspect wanted in the murders of the Delphi teens.
NBC2 (Suspect on the bridge)
Haunting still images taken from Libby's phone of the suspect were released along with a snippet of the man's voice saying, "Down the hill."
Libby German is a hero for having the courage to turn on her phone's video recording right before the abduction and murder. Her quick thinking gave law enforcement clues that may not have been easily found.
The rest of the video, or even information on the length of it, has not been released. Authorities say it is disturbing in nature.
You can watch the first press conference that was held on February 22, 2017 here:
3. The authorities are STILL seeking information that could lead to the arrest of the suspect(s).
There has been over 17,000 tips that law enforcement has been diligently working on. At this point, they have just about 500 tips left to go through.
The reward money is currently around $250,000 for any information leading to the arrest of the murder suspect(s).
No tip is too small.
If you have any information, please call the tip line at 844-459-5786 or email at AbbyAndLibbyTip@CaCoShrf.com
There have been many rumors regarding who the guy on the bridge is.
Some theories seem plausible, others not so much.
Note: Please understand the following theories are based on rumors online and speculation from the internet. Nothing has been confirmed and YourTango does not endorse any of these theories.
Theory #1: About Ron Logan, property owner of land where the bodies of Libby and Abby were found.
YouTube (Ronald Logan)
The owner of the property where the bodies were found belonged to a man named Ron Logan. Because he generally fits the appearance and the voice of the man on the bridge, along with the fact his alibis didn't pan out, he has been a major player in online chat boards like Reddit.
Ron Logan was arrested and charged with violating his probation on drunk driving charges.
His property was searched by authorities and they said in doing so, they wanted to either confirm him as a suspect or clear him.
Though he's currently in jail serving time, law enforcement never officially cleared him leading to rumors that he is involved in some way.
Ron Logan's ex-wife even came to his defense in a lengthy Facebook rant:
Theory #2: The killer was also involved in the murders of Iowa cousins Lyric Cook and Elizabeth Collins.
NBCNews (Elizabeth Collins and Lyric Cook)
There's a theory that has been around since the beginning of the investigation that the murders are connected to another pair of murders in Iowa.
Two young cousins, Lyric Cook, 10 and Elizabeth Collins, 8, were kidnapped and killed in Evansdale, Iowa on July 13, 2012.
Both sets of girls were found in the woods, had been walking a trail, and kidnapped and murdered on the 13th of the month.
Elizabeth’s father, Drew Collins, told KWWL he had contacted Evandale police, “I wanted to make sure they were looking at it and they were already ten steps ahead of me, looking at it. They contacted Indiana State Police.”
Though the similarities are concerning and frightening, no connections have been made as of this writing.
Theory #3:
DailyMail (Abigail 'Abby' Williams)
Blogger Robert Lindsay has a new theory he states is more than likely the truth that will eventually be revealed.
The entire situation is a tragedy and heartbreaking enough already, but this particular rumor, if true, is devastating.
Lindsay claims that Abby was pregnant with her boyfriend's baby.
The boyfriend's family did not want their son to live a life filled with a bad reputation, child support payments, etc.
Though no names are stated, it's alluded to either the boy's father, grandfather, or uncle who went to meet the girls on the bridge that day to either try and convince Abby to have an abortion or worse, give her a back-alley procedure in the barn that seems to be the location of the kill site.
Libby may have fought harder than the suspects had thought she would and accidentally killed her, then having to kill Abby because she was now a witness.
It's also speculated that Abby was found with a stake in her stomach, somewhat of a final intent to kill the unborn child.
Our hearts go out to the families involved in this heinous crime. We hope the killer(s) can be found swiftly and without further harm to anyone. If you have any information about the tragic murders of these two teen girls, please call the tip line at 844-459-5786 or email at AbbyAndLibbyTip@CaCoShrf.com