'Odinism', ritual sacrifice raised in defense of Delphi, Indiana double-murder suspect

Attorneys for a man accused of killing two teenage girls six years ago in Delphi, Indiana filed a lengthy and at times bizarre motion for a hearing that claims the girls were killed by cult members and double-murder suspect Richard Allen has no ties to those religious groups.

In a 136-page memorandum filed Monday, Allen’s lawyers allege that the search warrant executed on his home Oct. 13, 2022 was based on faulty probable cause.

The memorandum also alleges that Abigail Williams, 13, and Liberty German, 14, were murdered in a ritual killing by several people, not Allen, The Lafayette Journal & Courier, part of the USA Today Network reported. 

Allen, 51, was charged in October of 2022 with killing the two girls after investigators said evidence at the scene linked him to the deaths. But Allen's defense team said Monday that detectives overlooked other clues and potential suspects as the investigation focused on Allen.

"Members of a pagan Norse religion, called Odinism, hijacked by white nationalists, ritualistically sacrificed Abigail Williams and Liberty German … (N)othing, absolutely nothing, links Richard Allen to Odinism or any religious cult, the memorandum stated. 

Sticks placed at the crime scene to form Germanic letters associated with the religion is one of several clues that indicates that the girls were killed as part of a ritual, Allen's defense attorneys wrote in the memo.

Other evidence found at the scene, including painting with the blood of victim Liberty German, supports the defense notion that a group of unknown suspects killed the girls, the attorneys wrote. Investigators ignored and omitted evidence of a ritualistic killing and proceeded to request a search of Allen’s home, according to a motion that requests the evidence from the search to be suppressed. 

"(The) Delphi investigation seemingly, and quickly, abandoned the obvious correlation between the crime scene and Odinism, despite an obscene amount of evidence linking Odinism to the crime scene,” the motion reads.

Here’s what we know about the case.

Who is Richard Allen?

Richard Allen, 51, was arrested in connection with the deaths of Abby and Libby. They were killed on February 13, 2017.  Allen was suspected of luring the girls off a trail they were walking on that afternoon. Allen used to work at a CVS in the Delphi area as a licensed pharmacy technician. 

One of Libby’s relatives previously told reporters that Allen had processed photos of the girls at the local drug store and did not charge the family for the cost, according to Lafayette Journal & Courier.

He had continued to live in the area until he was arrested. 

“He said he’s hiding in plain sight. And that’s the case. Didn’t know, I don’t know the gentleman personally at all. I’ve probably seen him. It’s a small county. But definitely I don’t know him,” Libby’s grandmother Becky Patty previously told reporters at a news conference.

CVS issued a statement at the time stating, “We remain devastated by these murders and our hearts go out to the German and Williams families. We are shocked and saddened to learn that one of our store employees was arrested as a suspect in these crimes. We stand ready to cooperate with the police investigation in any way we can.” 

What’s the point of Allen’s 136-page memorandum?

The memorandum was filed to support Allen’s motion for a hearing challenging the warrant.

Allen's attorneys believe the hearing will show that a "false statement knowingly or intentionally, or with reckless disregard for the truth" was used in an affidavit to get a warrant, according to govinfo.gov.

"(T)he evidence supporting the assertions contained throughout this memorandum was buried deep in a mountain of discovery, thousands upon thousands of pages of paperwork and hundreds of hours of videos. But not buried deep enough,” according to the memorandum. 

Or rather, the evidence presented in the memorandum by the defense was information Carroll Circuit Judge Benjamin Diener should have been made aware of prior to signing the search warrant. 

“Richard Allen ... request that this Court set this case for a Franks hearing at which time the Defense will be asking for the search warrant to be deemed illegal and the fruits of the illegal warrant to be suppressed,” the memorandum stated. 

Allen also requested news cameras and public broadcastings of his pretrial proceedings and trial.

What happened to Libby and Abby?

On Feb. 13, 2017, Libby and Abby went for a walk on Monon High Bridge trail, part of the 10-mile Delphi Historic Trails system. The two friends were eighth graders at Delphi Community Middle School.

The pair never returned to their pre-arranged pickup spot after their hike. Their bodies were found the next morning in a wooded area not far from the Monon High Bridge, which they had visited the day before, according to evidence from the crime.

Allen was accused of luring the girls off the trail that afternoon before killing them on the north bank of the Deer Creek, about a quarter of a mile from the bridge.

Libby took a video on her phone of a man approaching them, who was heard telling the girls to go "down the hill." The pair never returned to their pre-arranged pickup spot after their hike.

Allen was charged with two counts of murder in late October. An unfired semiautomatic bullet found between the girls' bodies had tool markings indicating it was ejected from a pistol owned by Allen, according to reporting by Lafayette Journal & Courier.

When is the trial set to start?

The trial is set to start Jan. 8 in Fort Wayne where a jury will be selected, The Lafayette Journal & Courier reported. 

Given the amount of public attention this case has garnered over the last six years, jurors will be selected from Allen County instead of Carroll County. 

After the jury is selected, the trial will take place in Carroll County, where it will remain until a verdict is reached.

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