Did Delphi Bridge double murderer kill himself after police standoff?
The death of a alleged sex predator during a police standoff may have reignited the Delphi murder investigation.
An accused rapist who killed himself as cops surrounded him has been name as a suspect in the murder of two young girls on a remote trail.
Paul Etter, 55, shot himself twice and died on June 27 during a standoff with police who were trying to arrest him for the abduction and rape of a 26-year-old woman in Indiana.
In the wake of Etter’s death, authorities told the Lafayette Journal & Courier: ‘(Etter’s) name has come up through the process’ of investigating the murders of Libby German, 13, and 14-year-old Abby Williams.
The teens were found dead along near a creek, a mile away from an abandoned railway bridge on the Delphi hiking trail in Indiana on February 14, 2017.
Authorities say the girls were abducted and killed after they were dropped off on by relatives to go hiking on the historic trails.
Police have since released a short clip taken on Libby German’s cellphone that shows a man saying ‘guys…down the hill’ as he walks toward them along the abandoned bridge.
Investigators have not released much information related to the murders, including how they were killed.
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Authorities say Etter sexually assaulted the unnamed woman on his family’s farm for five hours. The victim said she pulled into Etter’s driveway with a flat tire. He asked if she needed help, but she declined his offer and left because she didn’t feel safe.
Etter followed her vehicle, she said. When the pulled into a friend’s driveway, Etter pulled up behind her, handcuffed her, and drove her to the farm where he raped her, holding her captive for hours before letting her go.
Tippecanoe County Sheriff Bob Goldsmith said Etter’s case will remain open in hopes to solve unanswered questions.
Information regarding the case was shared with the Carrol County investigators, who looked into the Delphi murders, but Tippecanoe County Sheriff Sergeant Thad Miller doubted Etter was a top suspect in the girls’ murders.
Miller said: ‘We have shared information about Etter with them, but we’ve done that with other suspects, too.’