Police search home on property where slain Indiana teens were found

State police say the man who owns this property is not a suspect at this time.

ByABC News
March 17, 2017, 5:14 PM

— -- Authorities investigating the murder of two Indiana teen girls served a search warrant today at the home of the man who owns the property where the girls' bodies were found, state and local officials told ABC News.

As of yet, no arrests have been made in the double murder case that shook the rural small town of Delphi, Indiana. State police told ABC News today that property owner Ron Logan is not a suspect "at this time."

Logan’s attorney, Andrew Achey, said in a statement, “Mr. Logan had no involvement in this heinous crime.”

"I would like to caution the public to avoid jumping to conclusions before law enforcement has completed the ongoing investigation," Achey added. "Not only does Mr. Logan maintain his innocence but he also encourages anyone with information to call the tip line."

It was Feb. 13 when eighth-graders Abby Williams, 13, and Libby German, 14, disappeared while on a hiking trail near their hometown of Delphi. Their bodies were found on Logan's property the next day.

PHOTO: A makeshift memorial for Abby Williams and Libby German next to a trail they were hiking the day they disappeared, Feb. 13, 2017, in Delphi, Indiana.
A makeshift memorial for Abby Williams and Libby German next to a trail they were hiking the day they disappeared, Feb. 13, 2017, in Delphi, Indiana.

The only clues that have been released to the public are this photo of a man who police say is the prime suspect in the investigation and a chilling recording found on Libby's phone with just three audible words: "down the hill."

PHOTO: A photograph provided by the Indiana State Police of a subject who was on the Delphi Historic Trails, Feb. 13, 2017 around the time Abigail Williams and Liberty German were walking.
A photograph provided by the Indiana State Police of a subject who was on the Delphi Historic Trails, Feb. 13, 2017 around the time Abigail Williams and Liberty German were walking. The police are asking help from the public to help identify him so he can be contacted regarding what he might have seen.

Carroll County Sheriff Tobe Leazenby told ABC News today the search warrant is "part of the continuing investigative process" and he said he cannot go into any specifics about what authorities are looking for. This is not the first search warrant served in this case.

Meanwhile, as Logan's property is searched, Logan himself today is in the local jail on an unrelated charge, Leazenby said. Logan was arrested March 11, picked up on an arrest warrant for a probation violation, Leazenby said. A probation office spokesperson told ABC News the office cannot comment on pending cases.

PHOTO: Pictured is Ron Logan in a photo provided by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.
Pictured is Ron Logan in a photo provided by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.

Leazenby stressed, "Speculation and assumptions can quickly develop from something like this."

"Just because a search warrant is issued" on someone’s property, Leazenby said, does not mean an arrest follows.

State police said today authorities are still combing through the thousands of tips they've received in the double murder case.

The residents of Delphi, a tight-knit community of nearly 3,000 people dubbed by the local sheriff as "small-town USA," were shaken by the crime.

Greg Briles, the superintendent of schools at the Delphi Community School Corporation, told ABC News earlier this week, "We're still very concerned about the individual or individuals who have not been caught ... they're still out there."

PHOTO: A sign in Delphi, Indiana, for teens Abby Williams and Libby German, who were killed in Feb. 2017.
A sign in Delphi, Indiana, for teens Abby Williams and Libby German, who were killed in Feb. 2017.

Leazenby told ABC News earlier this week there is not necessarily increased security in town, but he said community members appear to be more vigilant.

"People look at people different ways now, I think," Leazenby said. "I think complacency has been at least eliminated at this stage, and it's more of a mindful, watchful, vigilant attitude. I don't want paranoia, and I don't think we've had that, but people literally looking over their shoulder is not necessarily a bad thing in today's society."

At Delphi Community Middle School, where Abby and Libby were eighth-graders looking forward to high school, grieving friends are now painting a "tree of life" on the cafeteria wall with different messages, Briles said.

Briles said teachers and students are "still coping with the situation of losing two students. I don't think it's something that is gonna go away in a month's period of time. I think it's something that's going to have a lasting effect."

People can provide information by calling the tip line at (844) 459-5786. Information can be reported anonymously. Tips can also be emailed to abbyandlibbytip@cacoshrf.com.