Police released a new sketch of a man they believe to have murdered two teenage girls after telling them to go “down the hill” in Delphi, Indiana in February.
The bodies of Abigail Williams, 13, and Liberty German, 14, were found in the woods on February 14 where they were hiking along a trail. The Indiana State Police say they’ve been following dead end leads on the girls’ killer ever since and on Monday released a sketch to the public asking for tips and information on the man depicted.
Williams and German were dropped off by family members at Monon High Bridge on February 13. Hours later their bodies were found about a mile away near Deer Creek in Delphi, a small town populated by less than 3,000 people. Police have not released the cause of death or any information about a murder weapon.
ADVERTISEMENT
One of the girls was able to take a video on her cell phone that police believe is connected to the attack. Police have not released the video, but they released a photo of the man dressed in a blue jacket and jeans and released an audio clip of him saying “down the hill.”
Along with the sketch, police released an updated description based on “information received during the course of this ongoing investigation” of the possible suspect: 5’6 to 5’10, weighing 180 to 220 pounds, reddish brown hair.
“This person's evil. This person is a monster,” lead investigator Sergeant Jerry Holeman said in a TV interview. “This could happen again. So if you're holding that information for whatever reason, you need to think of that. This could happen to your niece, daughter, cousin, sister.”
Police are offering a $230,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest and conviction.
Though more video footage and other evidence found at the scene is being analyzed by the FBI and local police, police have released minimal details to the public.“Just because we haven’t released information to the media doesn’t mean we don’t have more information,” Indiana State Police Sgt. Tony Slocum said on February 17. “Some of the facts we don’t release are only known to the person who committed the crime.”
Delphi City Police, Carroll County Sheriff's Office, Indiana State Police and the FBI are all involved in the investigation. Indiana State Police Sgt. Kim Riley said they received over 18,000 tips and have interviewed 1,000 potential suspects. Investigators say the public reach of this case has helped generate tips, but has also made it more challenging to determine which leads are rumors and which could be potential breaks in the case.
“Today is the day we're going to get closer to the end,” Holeman said at a news conference in April. “Today is the day we're going to get closer to justice for Abby and Libby.”
Twenty people have been arrested on unrelated charges as a result of the investigation, but nothing has indicated police are any closer to finding the girls’ murderer.
