‘I did it’: Delphi murder suspect’s alleged telephone confessions to his wife played out in court

Delphi, Indiana, murder suspect Richard Allen allegedly confessed to the crime in multiple jailhouse phone conversations with his wife, which were played for the jury Thursday.

In one phone call, Allen told his wife Kathy, “I did it. I killed Abby and Libby.”

“No, you didn’t,” she said. Allen replied, “Yes, I did.”

“Why would you say that?” Kathy said. “I know you didn’t. Something’s wrong.’

In another phone call, Allen told his wife, “I think I may have gone crazy. … I want you to know that I did this.”

She replied, “No, you haven’t. You’re unwell.’

Allen is charged with murder Libby German, 14, and Abby Williams 13, on a hiking trail in February 2017. He pleads not guilty to murder.

In a separate phone call, Allen told his wife, “If I get the electric chair or the death penalty, will you be there for me?” I killed Abby and Libby.”

On another call, Allen said, “I did it, Kathy. I did it. Do you still love me?’

She replied, “Yes, I do. But you didn’t do it.’

‘I don’t want to upset you. I’m sorry,” Allen told his wife. ‘I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t know if I’ve gone crazy.’

“I feel like I’m already in hell,” he told her later during the phone call. “I don’t understand what’s going on.”

All too reportedly confessed to corrections officials and a prison psychologist, according to their testimonies. But Allen’s mental state while in custody has been questioned.

A psychologist testified this week that Allen could be classified as having a serious mental illness. Allen was held in solitary confinement for 13 months, which she said can be detrimental to a person’s mental health.

The psychologist said she believed Allen was suffering from “situational psychosis” in prison. She said Allen would have episodes of psychosis and then go into remission.

Allen’s strange behavior while in custody included hitting his head against the wall, washing his face in the toilet, refusing food, eating paper, smearing feces in his cell and applying feces on his face for two hours, according to testimony from corrections staff.

On the day of the murders, Libby and Abby saw a man behind them on the bridge, and Libby started recording on her phone, prosecutors said. The man — known as “bridge guy,” based on video of his voice released to the public — pulled out a gun and ordered the girls to “get down the hill,” prosecutors said.

Brian Harshman, an Indiana State Police trooper who said he listened to 700 of Allen’s calls and tapped his text messages and video chats, testified Thursday that after listening to the calls he believes Allen is the voice in Libby’s ‘bridge guy’ video.

The psychologist testified that Allen told her he had ordered the girls “down the hill” and planned to rape them, but then he saw something – a person or a van – and freaked out.

Harshman told jurors he believed Allen was startled by a van belonging to resident Brad Weber. Weber, who lives near the crime scene, owns a 2000 Ford Econoline van. Harshman said the time it would have taken Weber to drive home from work fits the timing of the killings .

Defense attorney Brad Rozzi said police never investigated how many vans were registered in the county at the time of the killings. Rozzi also noted that numerous people were suspected of being the man in the “bridge guy” video, including Weber.