We have spent all night digging through
new court documents in the Delphi murders,
getting new insight into this
case that captured the nation's
attention for almost six years.
In these court documents that I have in
my hands, the first mention of a gun,
testimony from witnesses describing a
creepy man on the bridge where Abby Williams
and Libby German were last seen alive,
and security video from a nearby
business capturing people and cars
coming and going from the area.
This is the first major update.
Since Richard Allen was arrested last month
and charged with Abby and Libby's murder,
these documents answer some of the
questions about how long he's been on
police radar and how he ended up behind bars.
But there's still a lot we don't know.
Tonight we're going to be
breaking that down in a moment.
But first at 11,
what we do know investigators first
talked with Richard Allen back in 2017.
He admitted at the time to being on the
trail and parking at a nearby building.
Alan told investigators back then he saw.
Three girls at the Freedom Bridge,
but said he did not speak with them.
Fast forward to October 13th of this year,
when he was interviewed again.
That same day, police searched Allen's home.
They found jackets, boots,
knives and guns.
Forensic analysis then discovered
one of those guns matched an unspent
round discovered within just two
feet of the girl's bodies.
Days later, on October 26th,
the day Allen was arrested,
he voluntarily went to state
police and told them he couldn't.
Explain how that bullet got there.
Police say the bullet links
Allen to the scene.
There are still lots of things
we don't know right now about
the evidence in this case.
Tonight,
our Rachel Kraus takes a closer look at
the questions still lingering tonight.
These new documents paint a clearer
picture of what happened on that bridge
in Delphi back in February of 2017.
But even with all of this new information,
there are still so many unanswered questions
as to what happened to Abby and Libby.
In the probable cause affidavit,
police mentioned that the video taken
by the girls before their death,
one of the victims says gun.
And then there's the unspent
bullet at the scene.
Forensic teams linked that to Alan's gun,
but that Ballistics analysis may be
a point of contention in a trial.
In recent years,
a number of scientific reports have cast
doubt on the science behind those analysis,
and we don't know if that's the only evidence
from the scene linking Allen to the crime.
While the probable cause affidavit
indicates that this gun is largely what
linked Allen to Abby and Luby's murders,
we still don't know how the
girls were murdered.
Police have never said how they died.
When police found their bodies
two days after they went missing,
an FBI agent noted that it appeared the
girl's bodies were moved and staged.
There were no visible signs
of a struggle or fight,
and a piece of clothing was missing.
But the biggest question for
many tonight is why would Allen
have killed Abby and Libby?
We still don't know the motive.
Why would Mr. Allen kill these
two young girls back in 2017?
What is the motive?
The allegation is kidnapping.
But for what purpose?
What was he going to do?
Hold them for ransom?
That's unlikely.
We don't know the motive.
We don't know the exact
weapon used or the number of.
Weapons used and we
need to establish that.
And the probable cause affidavit
also does not address what
prosecutors told the court last week,
stating publicly that they
didn't believe Richard Allen
was the only actor in this case.
It just last week the prosecutor made this
statement that they have a very solid case.
Yeah. And even with all of these
unanswered questions ahead of trial,
the prosecutors office has said
they believe the evidence shows
Alan was involved in Abby and Luby's
murders. Alright, Rachel, thanks.
Now investigators tell us they were able
to piece together some of this case through
witness statements and video evidence.
Court documents repeatedly mentioned footage
captured by cameras at Hoosier Harvest Store.
Our news crews were out there today,
so we put together this map that
I want to show you so you get an
idea about where everything is.
So who's your harvest store is right here.
That's this building. Now.
This is right across the street
from the Monon High Bridge Trail,
which you see here in red.
Now there was a witness.
Who said that she was driving
eastbound on this road?
This is 300 N the day the girls disappeared.
And she said she saw a guy wearing
a blue jacket and blue jeans
who was muddy and bloody.
Video also captured a car that
investigators say resembled Richard
Allen's Ford Focus at 1:27 PM now,
witnesses reported seeing a car
with a similar description.
Allen told police he was at the trail from
1:30 to 3:30 and video from Hoosier Harvest.
Or leads investigators to believe that Abby
and Libby were dropped off at 2:00 PM.
Now I want to give you a look
at what's next in this case.
Richard Allen's attorneys want to take
the trial 150 miles outside Carroll County.
They want to avoid a tainted jury pool based
on this case's extensive media coverage.
But as you see here,
just outside that 150 mile circle,
they're looking at two places where they
would like to hold the trial, Jeffersonville.
Or Evansville.
So far, a judge has not ruled on
that change of venue request.
Now you can find our in-depth
coverage of the Delphi murders online.
You can do it right now,
and it's easy.
Just go ahead and scan the QR
code you see here on your screen.
That'll take you to all of our stories.
In this case,
you can also check out all the
court documents that I've been
talking about right now.
It's all there for you on wthr.com.