Libby German’s grandmother and guardian, Becky Patty, was surprised to learn that the man arrested for the murders of Libby and Abby Williams was a Delphi resident.
“It’s a small community,” she told ABC News hours after announcing Richard Allen’s arrest. “It’s hard to be one of us.”
“How could someone do that and go on living like nothing happened?” added Libby’s grandfather, Mike Patty.
Libby’s sister, Kelsi German, said she always thought the girl’s killer must be someone familiar with the Delphi area, but said she didn’t want to believe the suspect was “right among us.”
Mike Patty praised what he said was a cop who was diligent and “sacrifices his family time” to handle his granddaughter’s case.
“They never let up,” he said.
“We have a lot of unanswered questions,” he added, “but everything will come in due time.”
For Libby’s sister, the arrest brought “new obstacles and new emotions that we have to learn how to deal with”.
German said she went to her sister’s grave on Sunday to discuss an update on the case with her.