Attorneys for Richard Allen, the man accused of murdering two teen girls in Delphi, Indiana, made shocking new claims in a new court filing Monday—asserting there’s “overwhelming” evidence that Abby Williams and Libby German weren’t massacred by Allen, but were instead “ritualistically sacrificed” by a religious cult run by white nationalists.
Defense attorneys wrote that German, 14, and Williams, 13, were killed by cult members in a sick ritual that included multiple people in 2017—though they claimed Allen was not present at the time. His lawyers said the alleged killers practice the pagan Norse religion Odinism, which has been “hijacked by white nationalists.”
Citing a letter sent to police in 2019, the defense said German and Williams were targeted because one of their parents, who is white, was dating someone of another race.
ADVERTISEMENT
The twisted allegation emerged as Allen’s defense tries to have evidence collected from a raid of his home be disqualified, which includes the finding of a pistol that links him to the crime. The defense claims the judge who signed the search warrant was unaware of the double murder’s alleged links to Odinism—making the probable cause case for the Allen’s search warrant faulty.
“Nothing links Richard Allen to any of the Odinite suspects: the same Odinite suspects that evidence strongly supports sacrificed Abby and Libby in some sort of pagan ritual,” the filing read. “Richard Allen had nothing to do with this crime, but rather is an innocent man; a patsy for the police, arrested 26 days before an election.”
Attorneys backed up their bombshell claims by pointing to eerie observations cops made at the crime scene. That included the finding of sticks that formed Germanic letters—symbols supposedly associated with Odinism. The filing claimed the sticks were painted with the blood of the massacred girls, and that sticks were placed in Abby’s hair that “crudely mimicked horns or antlers.”
The filing said there were clear “runes” left at the scene, which a state trooper wrote in a report appeared to be a “satanic type of worshiping.”
“These murdering Odinites left behind obvious signatures, symbols,” defense attorneys said.
Monday’s filing also cited the FBI’s analysis of the crime scene, which supposedly said the girls’ slaying was carried out by someone or multiple people “involved in Nordic beliefs.” The defense named five men they insist cops cleared as non-suspects too quickly.
“Due to either incompetence or a concerted intentionality, those in charge of the investigation refused to arrest or even properly investigate these obvious suspects,” the filing said.
The defense grilled cops for abandoning the possibility the teens were killed in a sacrifice despite there being “an obscene amount of evidence linking Odinism to the crime scene.” The filing listed 92 different reasons the defense claims German and Williams could not have been massacred by a single person, like Allen.
The motion, filed by attorneys Andrew Baldwin and Brad Rozzi, totaled 136 pages. The defense hopes a judge will grant a hearing that will allow them to expose investigators’ alleged shortcomings and have the evidence against Allen thrown out.
Allen is accused of kidnapping the teens as they hiked through Indiana's Delphi Historic Trails and brutally murdering them in February 2017. Prosecutors allege he killed the girls before moving and staged their bloodied bodies on the edge of a private farm’s property.
Richard Allen.
Indiana State PoliceThe case instantly garnered national attention, which was rekindled in October when cops arrested Allen, a 50-year-old ex-pharmacy tech who is married with two children. Prosecutors said in June that Allen confessed to murdering the girls in multiple jailhouse calls with his wife.
Also tying Allen to the murders was an unspent .40 caliber round that was found between the teenagers' bodies. Prosecutors allege that the bullet was linked to Allen's Sig Sauer Model P226 firearm through forensic evidence, which revealed the round had been “cycled through” his gun at some point. Authorities said that gun was recovered by police in last year’s raid on Allen’s home, along with numerous knives, sheaths, and pieces of potentially incriminating clothing.
Allen’s wife said her husband used to own a blue jacket that appeared to be similar to what the girls’ suspected killer wore on Feb. 13, 2017. The teens had recorded a video that showed a man—now thought to be Allen—walking towards them on a narrow bridge. “Down the hill,” the man can be heard saying.
Allen has pleaded not guilty to a pair of murder charges. He’s the only person facing charges in the double murder, but prosecutors have not ruled out the possibility that others may be charged eventually.
In a separate motion Monday, defense attorneys asked for Allen to be transferred to another prison as he awaits trial. They said he’s “been living in hell” and has seen prison guards wearing “In Odin We Trust” patches on their uniforms, making him fear for his safety.
