The Deaths of Libby German and Abby Williams Are Known as the Delphi Murders — What Happened?

In February 2017, 13-year-old Abby Williams and 14-year-old Libby German were killed while hiking the Delphi Historic Trails in Delphi, Ind. The teenagers were walking along the Monon High Bridge when German took a couple of Snapchat videos of her best friend. She also filmed a man who was walking along the bridge at the same time.

Police probably have German to thank for her quick thinking on that day, which is obviously very bittersweet. Not only did German film the man who most likely murdered them both, but she also recorded audio of his voice. It's not often someone can say they might have helped solve their own murder, but it looks like German might have. What happened to Libby German and Abby Williams? Here's what we know.

What happened to Libby German and Abby Williams?

German and Williams decided to go for a hike the day before Valentine's Day, so they got a ride to a local trail from German's older sister, per News Nation . "We told each other we loved each other. And that was the last time I saw her," she recalled. It was around 2 p.m. when German posted the now infamous Snapchat videos. That was the last time there was any communication from either girl. A few hours later, their family grew concerned.

A massive search began the following day, but it didn't take long to locate the bodies of the young girls. They were found just off the hiking trail, fairly close to the bridge. Two days later law enforcement released the images from German's Snapchat along with audio of a man saying, "Guys, down the hill." Police believed this was the man who killed German and Williams. Three months later, law enforcement released a sketch of a suspect, which sadly did not do much.

Around this time, the Indiana State Police as well as the Federal Bureau of Investigation obtained a search warrant in connection to the @anthony_shots Snapchat account. This account had been sending messages to German. Law enforcement identified the owner as Kegan Anthony Kline, who admitted to using that count in order to chat with underage girls. Some were girls he knew while others were random individuals he reached out to on Instagram or Snapchat.

Although Kline was eventually cleared in terms of the murders, investigators found "100 pictures from underage girls that were sexual in nature, in addition to about 20 sexually explicit videos." In March 2023, he pleaded guilty to child exploitation charges and was sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Richard Allen was arrested in connection with the murders of Libby German and Abby Williams.

In October 2022, a local CVS employee by the name of Richard Allen was arrested in connection to the murders. The court documents surrounding his arrest were unsealed a month later. Apparently, investigators were able to trace a .40 caliber bullet found less than two feet from the bodies to a gun Allen purchased in 2001.

Allen had actually been interviewed by police in 2017, though he told them he saw three females while walking along another bridge. Witnesses from that day didn't recall seeing anyone on the trail around the time the girls disappeared. Police believe that's because they had been forced off the path and into the woods. Allen sat in jail until October 2024 when his trial began.