FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Jim Abbott discusses his role in the Delphi Murders investigation – Transcript.
[BEGIN FBI AGENT JIM ABBOTT INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT]
JAY ABBOTT (FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE): The FBI doesn’t necessarily have jurisdiction for murder cases. This was clearly a case that was within the jurisdiction of the State Police. And Doug Carter, Superintendent of Indiana State Police, is a good friend and a great colleague during that time, and continues to be a great friend. He came and asked for our assistance. As the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Indianapolis Division, I had, during my tenure, the option… the authority to provide whatever assistance he might want to the level that I thought was appropriate. I was absolutely enthused to unleash every FBI asset, technical ability… anything that we had to try to help him solve this case. Indiana State Police stayed the forefront in charge of the case. But, I will tell you that there were those days when the FBI certainly had more personnel in and around Delphi than anyone else in law enforcement. Some days I think we were over a hundred personnel that I was trying to keep track of, all doing various things in different capacities. Whether it was with the command post, videography type things, voice type analysis, crime scene experts, behavioral analysis experts, and then of course just numerous agents of pounding the pavement and running down leads that we had from thousands and thousands of tips.
REPORTER: When you’re out there… week one, week two, month two, month five, year one… what goes through your guys’s mind when you are still no arrests?
JAY ABBOTT: Each day that went by, we just felt like we were gonna be closer, and closer, and closer. And the investigators that Doug– with the state police– had assigned to the case and that I had assigned from the FBI, were extremely confident, very reliable, very intuitive as to how they did their investigations. They work together seamlessly and we’re very proud of them because of that. So, we just felt like with each day that we would have that break. I was very impressed oftentimes, and I would go up there repeatedly. And in the position I was in as the person who was in charge of the division for the FBI, you want to make sure you’re careful not to meddle and interfere with the investigators’ efforts. But you want to make sure they have all the tools they need and have everything possible that they can have at their disposal to have success. And one of the things I was most impressed by when I would go up to the command post—and I would always try to go up at times when I wouldn’t be a hindrance— but, they would usually start their day with a prayer. “Today is going to be the day that we finally bring justice to this case and ease the pain…” you know, for the families and for the community. And I was very impressed with that. Just to go up there and see everybody genuinely wanting to see a positive outcome in this case and bring closure, bring a solution, bring an end to it… was something I was very impressed with. And that was my involvement, making sure all that ran smoothly and the investigators had everything they needed.
REPORTER: You said you were fairly confident it would be solved fairly soon after, correct?
JAY ABBOTT: Yes.
REPORTER: 4 years later, and we are still saying an unsolved case. What do you make of that?
JAY ABBOTT: It’s…. sometimes I feel more things than I can really articulate. The exasperation and frustration is always there. And in the times that Doug Carter and his wife and my wife occasionally get together for dinner, at some point in the conversation the topic comes up. I know it’s still very close to Doug’s thoughts, and it continues to be in mine. It’s something that we spoke about an awful lot… just when is something going to happen? And again, the numerous things that we had at our disposal, and all the information and evidence that exists, it just boggles the mind. I am certain— and I know Doug feels the same way— there’s somebody, someone out there who knows something. Who knows the person, who knows something about the murder. That person, he or she, is either afraid to come forward because they’re fearful, or maybe they even feel themselves being complicit in some way. And to that person, I would tell them we’ll l protect you. You’ll be safe. And they would be doing an incredible service to the families and the community by bringing closure to them. And because I feel so strongly about many of the circumstantial– not circumstantial things– many of the crime scene things, of which we won’t speak about, that point to more of a signature that the killer left behind… we feel very confident if that person comes forward, that’s the thing that will help us tie it together. And that person who is out there and hopefully would be viewing something like this, would hopefully build that courage and know that what they were doing really would have a deep meaning for the families and the community that has suffered this tragedy.
There are things that occurred or that were found in the crime scene that only the killer would know. Those are things, as has been explained to the family and others and certainly to the media, that we just can’t speak about because we do not want to… we don’t want the killer to know what we know. Whoever he or she is– more probably ‘he’– that person is out of freedom now really in many ways. They have to wake up every morning knowing and wondering if today is the day that they’re going to finally be caught. Are those persons– who might potentially know something circumstantially about them that will give them away– will actually come forward? And so that person already is not free. Whether they care or not about this horrendous act that they committed, they’ll be caught at some point.
[END FBI AGENT JIM ABBOTT INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT]
