MASSAPEQUA PARK, NEW YORK: Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann has been described as a 'blank cipher' and unsympathetic individual by former colleagues who worked with him. Design director Niv Miyasota, who had worked with Heuermann for years, described him as a hard-nosed architect who often clashed with others due to his confrontational approach. Miyasota stated, "He liked to go to battle... He would bring things back to reality."
Another former colleague shared similar sentiments, portraying Heuermann as a stickler for rules and someone who often boasted about his accomplishments. "We used to butt heads sometimes," Miyasota said. "I'm a creative so I wanted to maintain my creative position, and he would bring things back to reality."
'I didn't get his deal!'
According to Miyasota, Heuermann was considered "odd" among colleagues but still participated in social events, including happy hours and other gatherings. Miyasota noted, "He was socially awkward in many ways. I guess the word for it is, he just didn't seem to have empathy. He was sort of like a cipher, like, what is this person? I didn't get angry, kind or sad from him. I just got blank. I didn't get his deal." However, the recent arrest of the 59-year-old architect, who ran RH Consultants & Associates, left colleagues shocked, as he had managed to evade investigators for nearly two decades.
Suffolk County prosecutors recently charged Heuermann with the murders of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman. and Amber Costello, whose remains were discovered wrapped in burlap near Gilgo Beach between 2009 and 2010. In addition to his peculiar personality, Miyasota recalled the sight of Heuermann's car filled with garbage, which mirrored the description provided by neighbors of his messy home. Miyasota also revealed that Heuermann owned several guns and firearms. While colleagues speculated that he was stockpiling weapons for doomsday scenarios, they did not suspect him of being violent.
'He was a bit of a narcissist!'
Another female colleague, who chose to remain anonymous, stated that Heuermann openly expressed his passion for firearms and hunting, sharing stories about his time at the gun range and his hunting expeditions. She described him as a "bit of a narcissist" who enjoyed talking about himself and his achievements as an architect, reported Daily Mail. "He liked to talk about himself, you know, pat himself on the shoulder for all his accomplishments, that he was an architect, that he knew building code well. He was socially awkward, but he liked to talk," she added. "He certainly wasn't a recluse. If you saw him standing on line somewhere, he'd strike up a conversation."
The boundaries between Heuermann's professional and personal life were clearly defined. "He kept professional and private life completely separate," she said. "I worked with him in the office together and we went to client meetings, and that was it." Days after Heuermann's arrest, law enforcement officers were seen removing firearms from his home, described as a "dungeon-like" space. Katherine Shepherd, an interior designer who had collaborated with Heuermann, recalled an incident in 2005 when he denied her access to a locked room in his basement.
'Is that where he took the women?'
"In the basement, there was this one room that was locked, and he said I couldn't go into that room. I was like – what the hell? That's weird. And he was kind of joking, like, oh you can't go in there because there's things in there. And then he said, 'I've got a bunch of guns," Shepherd said. "He was weird about it, and I was like okay, fine. I could measure around it."
"I didn't understand why he was being so weird about it, and now I'm thinking 'What was he hiding?'" Shepherd said. "It was a big room. What was happening in that room? Is that where he took the women?" Shepherd further shared her experiences of working with Heuermann, highlighting their friendly relationship and various instances where he displayed kindness, such as taking her to a firing range and accompanying her to the hospital after an accident. She worked with him intermittently from 2002 to 2007 and, much like his other colleagues, found him intelligent but "socially awkward."
