LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: Following a woman's disappearance in 2010, which prompted authorities to find at least 10 sets of human remains, a series of unsolved killings known as the Gilgo Beach murders terrorized locals and baffled investigators on Long Island's South Shore for over a decade. On Friday, July 14, authorities made a significant development in the investigation by charging 59-year-old New York architect Rex Heuermann of murder in connection with the deaths of three of the four women who came to be known as the "Gilgo Four."
Ten individuals were victims of suspected homicide years prior to the 2010 uncovering of one set of human remains at Oak Beach in Suffolk County. Between 1996 and 2010, several girls, one male, and a toddler had their lives taken. Their corpses were discovered all across Long Island during the course of a missing person search in 2010, which led to the onset of one of the most significant homicide investigations in Long Island's history, as per Gilgo News.
2010: Discovering the 'Gilgo Four' while looking for Shannan Maria Gilbert
While looking for Shannan Maria Gilbert, a 23-year-old Jersey City, New Jersey resident who had been missing since May 2010, police came across the first set of female remains (initially known as Jane Doe #1) in bushes along a remote stretch of beachfront land on Gilgo Beach.
Officials from Suffolk County claim that the first person whose remains were found in the investigation on December 11, 2010, was Melissa Barthelemy, 24. The remains of three more victims (initially known as Jane Does #2, 3, and 4), Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Amber Costello, and Megan Waterman, were found two days later on Gilgo Beach, scattered over a half-mile span. According to authorities, the four women were last spotted between July 2007 and September 2010, worked as escorts, and were clad in camouflage burlap.
2011: More remains discovered, including a mother and toddler
A few kilometers east of where the bodies of the "Gilgo Four" were discovered on March 29, 2011, the fragmentary skeletal remains of another woman were uncovered. Initially known as Jane Doe #5, the lady was later recognized by detectives as Jessica Taylor, a different prostitute whose incomplete remains had previously been found near Manorville in 2003, per the police.
Three additional sets of remains were discovered on an area of the Ocean Parkway in Suffolk County close to the beach the following month, on April 4, 2011. They included a female toddler, an unidentified Asian male, and a person who was initially known as Jane Doe #6, said the investigators.
A week later, two more sets of human remains were discovered in Nassau County, which is located about 40 miles east of New York City. One of the sets of remains was recognized as belonging to the toddler's mother based on DNA testing. Officials reported that the mother's fragmented remains were initially found in 1997. Remains discovered in 1996 on Fire Island "genetically matched" with the second set of remains, "significantly expanding the timeline and geographic reach" of the probe, according to officials.
Gilbert's body was discovered in December 2011 in the wooded marshes near Oak Beach in Suffolk County. The distance between that beach and the locations of the other 10 sets of human remains is around 9 miles. Authorities later stated that they thought Gilbert's death might have been an accident and unrelated to the murders at Gilgo Beach.
Early in December 2011, Suffolk County Police discovered Shannan Gilbert's handbag and cellphone in the wetlands near Oak Beach. Gilbert's remains were discovered two days later, a quarter-mile east of her personal effects.
2020: Police release images of a crucial clue and Jane Doe #6 identified
A black leather belt with the letters "WH" or "HM" imprinted on it was one of the potential pieces of evidence Suffolk County police released images of in January 2020. Additionally, the department developed a webpage to solicit fresh information for the inquiry. Geraldine Hart, a former commissioner of the Suffolk County Police, told reporters at the time, "We believe the belt was handled by the suspect and did not belong to any of the victims." On May 28, 2020, the New York Suffolk County Police Department revealed that "Jane Doe #6" was Valerie Mack, a 24-year-old Philadelphia mother who disappeared 20 years ago.
According to officials, the FBI used cutting-edge forensic DNA testing to help identify Mack's remains. Hart told reporters at the time that Suffolk County detectives used samples from Mack's bones to identify her biological family members through genetic genealogy, which finally lead to her adoptive family and son.
2022: Police form task force to find the killer and Heuermann was first mentioned
A multi-agency task team was established in February 2022 by Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison to look into the killings at Gilgo Beach. The FBI, the New York State Police, the Suffolk County Police Department, and the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office made up the task team. According to Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney, Heuermann was first named as a potential suspect in the Gilgo Beach homicide investigation on March 14, 2022, after a New York state detective found him in a database.
2023: Rex Heuermann arrested in suspect of killing the 'Gilgo Four'
Harrison claims that the first arrest in the case occurred on July 13, 2023, when a suspect linked to some of the Gilgo Beach murders was apprehended in New York City. The police commissioner stated that he was returned to the Suffolk County Police headquarters in the Long Island hamlet of Yaphank. Authorities identified the suspect a day later as Heuermann, a licensed architect who has run RH Consultants & Associates, an architecture and consulting firm with offices in New York City, since 1994, according to his official website.
With the restart of the investigation, the case against Heuermann came together over a two-year period. Tierney stated during a news conference that investigators used "the power of the grand jury," including more than 300 summons and search warrants, to gather evidence and connect Heuermann certainly to the murders. In court documents, it is noted that Heuermann has been linked to at least one other disappearance, that of Brainard-Barnes, a lady who was later discovered dead. This has given rise to speculation from police that other charges may be forthcoming.
