2026年4月8日 / 美国东部时间上午11:43 / 哥伦比亚广播公司新闻
作者：摩根·坎蒂、沙欣·托基
一场原本只为寻找一名失踪女子的调查，最终引出了多具遗体，并逮捕了一名警方认定的连环杀手。
2010年5月1日：香农·吉尔伯特失踪
23岁的香农·吉尔伯特是一名陪护人员。2010年5月1日凌晨，吉尔伯特拨打了紧急求救电话911，情绪十分慌乱。她当时正在长岛的一名客户家中，表示感觉有人在追杀她。她拔腿就跑，并告诉911接线员，有人想要杀她。随后，吉尔伯特便失踪了。
警方对吉尔伯特展开了全面搜查。数月过去，这名失踪女子仍杳无音讯。2010年12月，一名警官及其警犬布鲁在吉尔戈海滩附近发现了人类遗骸，但那并非吉尔伯特。他们反而找到了四名女子的遗体。
2010年12月：吉尔戈海滩四名受害者
警方在纽约长岛的吉尔戈海滩附近发现了四名女子的遗体。这四名女子被称为“吉尔戈海滩四受害者”，经确认分别是莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯、安伯·科斯特洛、梅根·沃特曼和梅利莎·巴泰勒米。警方表示，所有受害者身材都很娇小，其中三人被粗麻布包裹。警方随即展开追捕连环杀手的行动。
凶手有特定目标
时任萨福克县侦探部门主管的多米尼克·瓦龙表示，吉尔戈海滩四名受害者之间存在显著相似点。“她们都非常娇小，身高5英尺及以下，体重100磅。”瓦龙说道。这些女子年龄都在20多岁，且都从事在线陪护工作。
2007年7月6日：莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯的最后周末
莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯，25岁，是吉尔戈海滩四名受害者中最早失踪的一人。她曾在纽约市从事陪护工作，2007年7月失踪。梅利莎·坎恩摄
莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯通常被认为是吉尔戈海滩四名受害者中的第一人。她于2007年7月失踪。布雷纳德-巴恩斯是康涅狄格州诺里奇市的一名单亲母亲，育有两个孩子。她开始从事陪护工作，在克雷格list及其他网站发布广告招揽客户。2007年7月6日，一部一次性手机——一种任何人都可以匿名购买和使用的预付费手机——联系了她的手机。7月6日至7月9日期间，这名使用一次性手机的来电者与布雷纳德-巴恩斯的手机之间共有16次通话记录。
2007年7月8日：梅西·坎恩与姐姐的最后一通电话
莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯的妹妹梅西·坎恩在深夜接到了莫琳从曼哈顿中城宾州车站打来的电话。在2020年的一次采访中，坎恩告诉《48小时》栏目，莫琳说她会在午夜乘坐火车。此后，坎恩再也没有收到过莫琳的任何消息。
2009年7月：梅利莎·巴泰勒米失踪
24岁的梅利莎·巴泰勒米从纽约州布法罗市搬到纽约市，原本是做美发师的。后来，她也开始从事陪护工作。2009年7月，也就是布雷纳德-巴恩斯失踪近两年后，巴泰勒米失踪了。
2009年7月17日：嘲讽电话开始
巴泰勒米失踪后的几周内，警方表示，当时年仅15岁的妹妹阿曼达接到了一系列来自一名男子的电话，该男子使用的是梅利莎的手机。第一通电话于2009年7月17日下午12点40分左右打来，随后几周又陆续打来多通电话。其中一次通话中，这名男子告诉阿曼达，他已经杀了梅利莎。
2010年6月5日：梅根·沃特曼
22岁的梅根·沃特曼是来自缅因州斯卡伯勒的一名母亲，同样从事陪护工作。2010年6月5日，一部当天刚激活的一次性手机联系了她。
2010年6月6日：梅根·沃特曼失踪
凌晨1点31分，还是前一天使用过的那部一次性手机再次联系了沃特曼的手机。监控录像显示，沃特曼于同一时间左右离开了长岛豪帕格的一家智选假日酒店。这是人们最后一次看到她还活着。
“我无法让她回来”
莉莲娜·沃特曼的母亲失踪时，她年仅3岁。2020年，莉莲娜（图为与梅根·沃特曼的合影）在首次接受电视采访时告诉《48小时》栏目，如果能和妈妈说话，她会告诉妈妈自己有多爱她。“我从来没有真正机会说过这些话，”莉莲娜告诉记者艾琳·莫利亚蒂。她表示，自己每天都想念妈妈。
2010年9月2日：安伯·科斯特洛失踪
27岁的安伯·科斯特洛是住在长岛的一名陪护人员，一名使用一次性手机的男子联系了她。第二天，她离开家去见客户，从此再也没有回来。
科斯特洛失踪后，警方表示她的室友戴夫·沙勒向他们提供了她客户的信息。沙勒将其中一名客户描述为看起来像“食人魔”，开着一辆“第一代雪佛兰Avalanche皮卡”。沙勒表示，在她失踪的当晚，一名客户出价1500美元包下科斯特洛一整晚——这是她时薪的六倍。
2011年，沙勒接受了莫利亚蒂的采访。“这个男人非常执着，”沙勒说。“他打了好几个电话。每次都和她聊很久。”他表示，这名客户说服了经验丰富的陪护人员科斯特洛做了一件她从未做过的事：不带钱包和手机就出门，在他的车里见面。沙勒说，接近午夜时分，科斯特洛离开了家，沿着街道走去，之后他就再也没见过她。
2010年12月16日：仍未找到香农
2011年整个春季，调查人员一直在大范围搜寻香农·吉尔伯特。
2011年5月：又发现六具遗骸
到2010年5月，警方在该地区又发现了六具遗骸，使总数达到10具，其中包括吉尔戈海滩四名受害者。调查人员不确定所有谋杀案是否都是同一凶手所为。
- 第五名受害者杰西卡·泰勒是一名陪护人员，2003年失踪。
- 警方编号为“第六具无名女尸”的遗骸现已被确认为瓦莱丽·麦克，她同样从事陪护工作，2000年失踪。
- 令调查人员惊讶的是，第七具遗骸属于一名年幼女童。
- 第八具遗骸是一名身着女装的亚裔男性。
- 第九具遗骸是一具女性头骨，属于凯伦·韦尔加塔，一名1996年失踪的陪护人员。
- 第十具遗骸为女性，警方因其躯干上的纹身将受害者昵称为“桃子”。尽管她的遗骸在6英里外被发现，但警方表示，DNA已确认“桃子”就是那名年幼女童的母亲。
2011年12月13日：香农·吉尔伯特被找到
2011年12月，也就是她失踪一年半后，同时也是吉尔戈海滩四名受害者被发现一年后，调查人员找到了吉尔伯特的遗骸。但他们认为她并非被谋杀。
多年后，萨福克县警察局公布了香农2010年5月1日失踪当天那通21分钟的911报警电话的完整录音。警察局长罗德尼·哈里森在接受艾琳·莫利亚蒂采访时表示，吉尔伯特的死亡可能并非谋杀。“这是一起不幸的事件，但目前我们认为她只是跑进了沼泽，不幸溺水身亡。”哈里森说道。
2022年2月：案件迎来新进展
在吉尔戈海滩四名受害者被发现后的近十年里，调查陷入停滞。直到2022年2月，萨福克县警察局长罗德尼·哈里森和萨福克县地区检察官雷·蒂尔尼成立了新的专案组。在接受莫利亚蒂采访时，地区检察官蒂尔尼表示，“仅仅六周后……雷克斯·休厄尔曼就首次被锁定为嫌疑人。”
来自过往的线索
调查人员是如何在六周内锁定嫌疑人的？原来，原始案件档案中藏有许多关键线索，新专案组终于将它们串联了起来。科斯特洛的室友戴夫·沙勒此前曾向警方描述过科斯特洛的一名客户及其驾驶的车辆车型。那是一辆第一代雪佛兰Avalanche皮卡。
凭借“食人魔般”男子的体貌特征以及他的卡车品牌和型号，警方仔细查看了科斯特洛2010年的通话记录。沙勒曾告诉他们，在科斯特洛失踪前，有一名客户不停地给她打电话。
一次性手机线索
警方当时就知道这名客户使用的是一次性手机。他们还知道，布雷纳德-巴恩斯、巴泰勒米、科斯特洛和沃特曼在失踪前都曾与一次性号码有过联系。
2012年，在联邦调查局的帮助下，警方确定大部分此类通话的信号都连接在纽约州马萨佩卡公园一小片区域内的手机信号塔上。他们将这片区域称为“信号盒”。根据蒂尔尼的说法，“信号盒”由马萨佩卡公园内的几个街区组成。
嫌疑人现身
凭借这片狭小的“信号盒”区域以及驾驶雪佛兰Avalanche皮卡的“食人魔般”男子的体貌特征，专案组现在锁定了主要嫌疑人。警方确认一名名叫雷克斯·休厄尔曼的建筑师就是他们认为可能犯下这些谋杀案的男子。
当他们查看休厄尔曼的个人手机记录时，警方表示，当那些一次性手机联系受害者时，休厄尔曼的手机信号位置与那些一次性手机的信号位置处于同一区域。他们还表示，一次性手机联系受害者时，信号通常出现在休厄尔曼居住的马萨佩卡公园，或是他的建筑事务所所在的曼哈顿中城。2023年，他们注意到休厄尔曼走进一家手机店为一部一次性手机支付费用。
DNA匹配
警方开始跟踪休厄尔曼。当他将一个披萨盒扔进曼哈顿中城的一个垃圾桶时，调查人员发现，休厄尔曼在披萨饼皮上的DNA与在梅根·沃特曼遗体旁发现的一根男性头发的DNA图谱一致。凭借DNA证据以及将休厄尔曼与一次性手机联系起来的通话记录，警方实施了逮捕。
2023年7月14日：嫌疑人被拘留
来自长岛马萨佩卡公园的雷克斯·休厄尔曼被控多项谋杀罪，涉及梅利莎·巴泰勒米、梅根·沃特曼和安伯·科斯特洛的死亡。休厄尔曼目前是莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯谋杀案的主要嫌疑人，但尚未因该案件被起诉。
当在新闻发布会上被问及休厄尔曼是否无罪时，休厄尔曼的律师迈克尔·布朗表示：“我的当事人跟我说了什么？他说他没有做过这件事。”
挖掘寻找证据
警方花费了12天时间搜查休厄尔曼的住宅，从地下室搜出了枪支，并在后院进行了挖掘。另一项重要的物证是一辆第一代雪佛兰Avalanche皮卡，案发时该车辆登记在休厄尔曼名下。警方在他位于南卡罗来纳州的一处房产中找到了这辆车。
作案时机？
作为一名已婚男子，休厄尔曼与第二任妻子阿萨·埃勒鲁普育有一个女儿和继子。埃勒鲁普出生于冰岛，夏天会带着孩子们去冰岛看望家人。警方认为，正是在这些旅行以及其他外出期间，休厄尔曼杀害了这些女子。
休厄尔曼拒不认罪
休厄尔曼在纽约州里弗黑德的萨福克县法院接受了传讯。他对梅利莎·巴泰勒米、梅根·沃特曼和安伯·科斯特洛的谋杀指控拒不认罪。法官下令将他关押在萨福克县监狱，不得保释，他目前正在那里等待审判。
缅怀安伯、梅利莎和梅根
调查人员希望此次逮捕能让受害者家属获得一丝平静。警察局长哈里森告诉艾琳·莫利亚蒂：“他夺走了某人的母亲、某人的女儿、某人的姐妹，不止一人，而是多名受害者。”
其他调查？
调查范围扩展到了休厄尔曼拥有房产的南卡罗来纳州和拉斯维加斯，当地侦探正在重新审视当地的失踪女性案件。休厄尔曼尚未因任何其他调查中的指控被起诉。
至于在吉尔戈海滩附近发现的其他遗体——杰西卡·泰勒、瓦莱丽·麦克、凯伦·韦尔加塔、“桃子”、年幼女童以及那名亚裔男性——均未与休厄尔曼有关联。
检方：嫌疑人的口腔拭子DNA与披萨盒DNA匹配
根据2023年9月27日法庭出庭时检方的说法，休厄尔曼口腔拭子的DNA与当局此前从披萨饼皮上收集并用于将休厄尔曼与其中一名受害者联系起来的DNA一致。休厄尔曼的律师对这份DNA样本的关联性提出了质疑。
2024年1月16日：休厄尔曼被控第四起谋杀
被捕六个月后，雷克斯·休厄尔曼因第四名 alleged 受害者莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯的死亡被起诉。调查人员表示，他们通过在捆绑受害者脚踝、脚部和腿部的皮带扣上发现的一根女性头发的DNA将布雷纳德-巴恩斯的谋杀案与休厄尔曼联系起来——根据法庭文件，这根头发与休厄尔曼的妻子阿萨·埃勒鲁普或女儿维多利亚的匹配概率高达万亿比一，后者在通勤火车上被跟踪并扔掉了一罐能量饮料。检方明确表示，他们认为所有头发转移都是休厄尔曼接触到所谓受害者造成的。在吉尔戈海滩四名受害者遇害期间，休厄尔曼的家人不在镇上。休厄尔曼对谋杀指控拒不认罪。
2024年6月6日：又两起案件与休厄尔曼关联
休厄尔曼被控杀害另外两名在长岛遇害的女子，两起案件相隔10年——分别是1993年的桑德拉·科斯蒂利亚谋杀案和2003年的杰西卡·泰勒谋杀案。科斯蒂利亚的死亡此前并未与吉尔戈案件相关联。萨福克县地区检察官办公室表示，在科斯蒂利亚和泰勒的遗体旁以及皮卡上发现的头发DNA证据将休厄尔曼与她们的谋杀案联系了起来。休厄尔曼对所有指控均拒不认罪。
2024年12月17日：休厄尔曼被控第七起谋杀
休厄尔曼被控杀害瓦莱丽·麦克，一名24岁的新泽西州女子，2000年时她在费城地区从事陪护工作。多年来，她一直被称为“第六具无名女尸”。2000年，她的部分遗骸在长岛马诺维尔被发现，十多年后，更多遗骸在吉尔戈海滩被发现。
2026年4月8日：休厄尔曼认罪
62岁的休厄尔曼对1993年至2011年间杀害七名女子的指控认罪，并承认杀害了第八名受害者。他表示自己勒死了所有受害者。此前他一直拒不认罪。
休厄尔曼于2023年因梅利莎·巴泰勒米、梅根·沃特曼和安伯·科斯特洛的谋杀案被捕。随后，他又因莫琳·布雷纳德-巴恩斯、桑德拉·科斯蒂利亚、杰西卡·泰勒和瓦莱丽·麦克的谋杀案被起诉。法官表示，休厄尔曼对起诉书中的7项罪名认罪，并承认杀害了第八名受害者凯伦·韦尔加塔。
Long Island serial killings: A timeline of the investigation
April 8, 2026 / 11:43 AM EDT / CBS News
By Morgan Canty, Shaheen Tokhi
What began as a search for one missing woman led to multiple bodies and the capture of a man police say is a serial killer.
May 1, 2010: Shannan Gilbert disappears
Shannan Gilbert, 23, was working as an escort. In the early morning hours of May 1, 2010, Gilbert made a frantic phone call to 911. She had been at a client’s home on Long Island, and said she believed someone was after her. She took off running and told the 911 operator there were people trying to kill her. Then, Gilbert vanished.
Police would do an exhaustive search for Gilbert. Months passed without a sign of the missing woman and then, in December 2010, near Gilgo Beach, a police officer and his K-9, Blue, found human remains. But it wasn’t Gilbert. Instead, they found the bodies of four women.
December 2010: The Gilgo Four
The Gilgo Four. From left, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Amber Costello, Megan Waterman and Melissa Barthelemy. CBS News
Police found the bodies of four women near Gilgo Beach on New York’s Long Island. The women became known as the Gilgo Four and were identified as Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Amber Costello, Megan Waterman and Melissa Barthelemy. Police say all of the women were petite and three of them were wrapped in burlap. Police began their hunt to find a serial killer.
The killer had a type
Dominick Varrone was chief of detectives at the Suffolk County Police Department, WCBS
Dominick Varrone, who was Suffolk County chief of detectives at the time, said there were striking similarities among the Gilgo Four. “Very petite. 5 foot or under, 100 pounds,” Varrone said. The women were also all in their 20s and were all working as online escorts.
July 6, 2007: Maureen Brainard-Barnes’ final weekend
Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, was the first of the Gilgo Four to disappear. She had been working as an escort in New York City when she vanished in July 2007. Melissa Cann
Maureen Brainard-Barnes is often referred to as the first of the Gilgo Four. She went missing in July 2007. Brainard-Barnes was a single mother of two living in Norwich, Connecticut. She had begun working as an escort, posting ads on Craigslist and other websites to meet clients. On July 6, 2007, her cellphone was contacted by a burner cellphone — a prepaid phone that anyone can buy and use anonymously. Between July 6 and July 9, there were 16 interactions between the caller using a burner phone and Brainard-Barnes’ cellphone.
July 8, 2007: Missy Cann’s last call with her sister
Melissa Cann says her sister Maureen’s death is always in the back of her mind. “It’s really really hard … I miss her so much.” CBS News
Maureen Brainard-Barnes’ sister, Missy Cann, received a call from Maureen late at night from Penn Station in midtown Manhattan. In an interview in 2020, Cann told “48 Hours” Maureen said she was going to take the train at midnight. Cann never saw or heard from Maureen again.
July 2009: The disappearance of Melissa Barthelemy
Melissa Barthelemy Barhelemy family
Melissa Barthelemy, 24, moved from Buffalo, New York, to New York City to work as a hairdresser. At some point, she also began working as an escort. In July 2009, nearly two years to the day that Brainard-Barnes went missing, Barthelemy disappeared.
July 17, 2009: Taunting phone calls begin
Melissa’s younger sister Amanda. (“48 Hours” agreed not to show her face.) CBS News
In the weeks following Barthelemy’s disappearance, police say her then 15-year-old sister, Amanda, received a series of phone calls from a man calling from Melissa’s cellphone. The first of these calls came on July 17, 2009 at approximately 12:40 p.m. A number of calls followed in the coming weeks. In one, the caller told Amanda he had killed Melissa.
June 5, 2010: Megan Waterman
Megan Waterman, 22, was the youngest of the four victims whose bodies were discovered near Gilgo Beach. Megan was last seen on June 6, 2010, leaving a Holiday Inn Express in Hauppauge, N.Y. Handout
Megan Waterman, 22, a mother from Scarborough, Maine, was also working as an escort. On June 5, 2010, she was contacted by a burner phone which had just been activated that same day.
June 6, 2010: Megan Waterman vanishes
Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison released video never seen by the public of a lobby of the Holiday Inn Express in Hauppauge on June 4 and 6 in 2010. Seen in a yellow top is Megan Waterman in her final hours. Suffolk County Police
At 1:31 a.m., Waterman’s phone was again contacted by the same burner phone as the day before. Security video showed Waterman leaving a Holiday Inn Express in Hauppauge, Long Island, around the same time. This was the last time she was seen alive.
“I can’t bring her back”
Lily Waterman tells “48 Hours” that if she could talk to her mom, she would tell her how much she loves her. “I never got to really say those words.” Elizabeth Meserve
Liliana Waterman was just 3 years old when her mother disappeared. In her first television interview in 2020, Liliana (pictured with Megan Waterman) told “48 Hours” that if she could talk to her mom, she would tell her how much she loves her. “I never got to really say those words,” Liliana told correspondent Erin Moriarty. She said she misses her mom every day.
Sept. 2, 2010: Amber Costello disappears
Amber Costello, 27, disappeared in September 2010, after she left her home on Long Island to meet a client. In 2011, her roommate Dave Schaller told “48 Hours,” “she was an amazing person, she really was.” Handout
Amber Costello, a 27-year-old escort living on Long Island, was contacted by someone using a burner phone. The next day, she left her house to meet a client and never returned.
After Costello’s disappearance, police say her roommate Dave Schaller told them about her clients. He described one of them as looking like an “ogre” and having “a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche.” On the night she went missing, Schaller says, a client offered Cistello $1,500 for the night – six times her hourly rate.
In 2011, Schaller spoke to Moriarty. “This guy was so relentless,” Schaller said. “He called several times. He was on the phone with her for quite a while each time.” He says the client got Costello, an experienced escort, to do something she never did: leave home without her purse or cellphone and meet him in his car. At nearly midnight, Schaller says Costello left the house, walked down the street, and he never saw her again.
Dec. 16, 2010: Still no Shannan
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Throughout the spring of 2011, investigators continued a wide-ranging search for Shannan Gilbert.
May 2011: Six more sets of remains discovered
By May 2011, police had discovered six more sets of remains in the area, bringing the total to 10 sets of remains — including the Gilgo Four. Investigators were not sure the same killer was responsible for all the murders. Suffolk County Police Department
By May 2011, police had discovered six more sets of remains in the area, bringing the total to 10 — including the Gilgo Four. Investigators were not sure the same killer was responsible for all the murders.
- Victim No. 5, Jessica Taylor, is an escort who went missing in 2003.
- Another set of remains police called “Jane #6” has now been identified as Valerie Mack, who also worked as an escort and went missing in 2000.
- Number 7, to investigators’ surprise they found a toddler girl.
- Number 8 was an Asian male dressed in women’s clothing.
- Number 9 was a female skull belonging to Karen Vergata, an escort who disappeared in 1996.
- Number 10, female remains, from a victim cops nicknamed “Peaches” because of a tattoo on her torso. Although her remains were found 6 miles away, police say DNA has confirmed that “Peaches” is the mother of that toddler.
Dec. 13, 2011: Shannan Gilbert is found
In December 2011, a year-and-a-half after she went missing, police found Shannan Gilbert’s belongings. Her purse, cellphone, shoes and even her jeans were found in the marsh eight miles from Gilgo Beach. A week later, her skeletal remains were found about a quarter mile from her belongings. Investigators are not convinced Shannan was murdered and theorize that she may have died of hypothermia or possible drowning. John Ray Law/AP
In December 2011, a year-and-a-half after she went missing, and a year after the Gilgo Four were found, investigators found Gilbert’s remains. But they don’t believe she was murdered.
Years later, the Suffolk County Police Department released the full audio of Shannan’s 21-minute 911 call on May 1, 2010, the morning she disappeared. Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said in an interview with Erin Moriarty, Gilberts’s death was likely not a murder. “It’s an unfortunate incident, but right now we believe that she just ran into the marsh and unfortunately drowned,” Harrison said.
February 2022: A fresh look at the case
Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney exits after a court appearance by Rex Heuermann, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023, in Riverhead, N.Y. AP/John Minchillo
For nearly a decade after the discovery of the Gilgo Four, the investigation stalled. Until, in February 2022, a new task force was formed by Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison and Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney. In an interview withMoriarty, DA Tierney said, “… a mere six weeks later … Rex Heuermann was identified for the first time.”
A tip from the past
After Amber Costello disappeared in 2010, police say her roommate Dave Schaller told them about her clients. He described one of them as looking like an “ogre” and having “a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche.” CBS News
How did investigators get a suspect in six weeks? It turns out that in the original case files were a number of critical clues that the new task force was finally able to connect. Costello’s roommate Dave Schaller had previously described one of Costello’s clients and the type of vehicle he drove to investigators. The vehicle was a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche.
With a description of an”ogre-like” man, and the make and model of his truck, police took a closer look at Costello’s phone records from 2010. Schaller had told them that before Costello disappeared, there was one client that called her incessantly.
The burner phone clue
Police back then knew the client was using a burner phone. And they knew that the Brainard-Barnes, Barthelemy, Costello and Waterman had all been in contact with burner numbers right before they disappeared.
In 2012, with the help of the FBI, police determined that most of those calls connected to cell towers inside a small area of Massapequa Park, Long Island. They called this area “the box.” According to DA Tierney, “the box” consisted of a couple of blocks within Massapequa Park.
A suspect in sight
Rex Heuermann was observed by law enforcement at a cellphone store in Midtown Manhattan on May 19, 2023. Suffolk County District Attorney
Armed with their small radius of “the box” and the description of an “ogre-like” man that drove a Chevrolet Avalanche, the task force now had a prime suspect. Police identified an architect named Rex Heuermann as the man they believed may have been responsible for the murders.
And when they looked at Heuermann’s personal cellphone records, they say that his phone was in the same area as those burner phones when they were used to contact victims. They also say that when the burner phones contacted victims, they were often in Massapequa Park, where Heuermann lived, or midtown Manhattan, where his architectural firm was located. In 2023, they noticed Heuermann going into a phone store to make a payment on a burner phone.
A DNA hit
Detectives tailing Rex Heuermann recovered his DNA from pizza crust in a box that he discarded in a Manhattan trash can. Suffolk County D.A.
Police began to tail Heuermann. When he threw out a pizza box into a trash can in midtown Manhattan, investigators found that Heuermann’s DNA on the pizza crust was consistent with a DNA profile found on a male hair discovered with Megan Waterman’s body. With DNA evidence, along with the cellphone records linking Heuermann to the burner phones, officers made an arrest.
July 14, 2023: A suspect in custody
Suspect Rex Heuermann leaving the Suffolk County Police 7th Precinct in connection with the Gilgo Beach murders on his way to court on July 14, 2023. Splash by Shutterstock
Rex Heuermann, of Massapequa Park, Long Island, was charged with multiple counts of murder in the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello. Heuermann is currently the prime suspect for the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, but he has not been charged with her death.
When asked about Heuermann’s innocence at a press conference, Heuerman’s attorney Michael Brown said, “What has my client told me? He told me he didn’t do this.”
Digging for evidence
An excavator is seen at the home of Rex Heuermann.. According to law enforcement sources, investigators are looking into whether any victims may have been killed at the house. CBS New York
Police spent 12 days looking through Heuermann’s house, pulling guns out of the basement, and digging in the backyard. Another important piece of evidence taken into possession was a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche registered to Heuermann at the time of the murders. It was sitting on property he owns in South Carolina when they recovered it.
An opportunity to kill?
A married man, Heuermann has a daughter and stepson with his second wife, Asa Ellerup. Ellerup, who was born in Iceland, would take the children to see her family there in the summers. It was during these trips and others, police believe, that Heuermann killed the women.
Heuermann pleaded not guilty
Rex Heuermann is seen in a booking image from the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office. Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office/AP
Heuermann was arraigned in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead, New York. He pleaded not guilty to the murders of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello. The judge ordered that he be held without bail in a Suffolk County jail where he is currently awaiting trial.
Remembering Amber, Melissa and Megan
From left, Amber Costello, Megan Waterman and Melissa Barthelemy CBS News
Investigators hope that the arrest can give victims’ families a sense of peace. Police Commissioner Harrison told Erin Moriarty, “He took away somebody’s mother, somebody’s daughter, somebody’s sister, not just one person, multiple individuals.”
Other investigations?
Investigations spread to South Carolina and Las Vegas where Heuermann owns property, with detectives there taking a fresh look at cases of missing women. Heuermann has not been charged in any additional investigations.
As for the other bodies found near Gilgo Beach – Jessica Taylor, Valerie Mack, Karen Vergata, “Peaches”, the toddler girl, and the Asian male – none of them have been linked to Heuermann.
Prosecutors: Suspect’s cheek swab matches pizza box DNA
DNA from Heuermann’s cheek swab matches the DNA that authorities had previously collected from a pizza crust and used to link Heuermann to one of the victims, according to prosecutors during a Sept. 27, 2023 court appearance. Heuermann’s lawyer disputed the significance of the DNA sample.
Jan. 16, 2024: Heuermann charged with fourth killing
Six months after his arrest, Rex Heuermann was indicted in the death of a fourth alleged victim, Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Investigators said they linked Brainard-Barnes’ murder to Heuermann via DNA from a female hair found in the buckle of a belt used to bind her ankles, feet and legs – eight trillion to one that it matched Heuermann’s wife Asa Ellerup or daughter Victoria, who was tailed on a commuter train and threw out an energy drink, according to court documents. Prosecutors made it clear they believed all hair transfer were made from Heuermann to his alleged victims. The family was out of town for the murders of the Gilgo Beach Four. Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to the murders.
June 6, 2024: Two more cases linked to Heuermann
Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann is now charged with killing two more women, Sandra Costilla and Jessica Taylor, 10 years apart on Long Island. CBS New York
Heuermann was charged with killing two more women 10 years apart on Long Island — the 1993 murder of Sandra Costilla and the 2003 murder of Jessica Taylor. Costilla’s death was not previously tied to the Gilgo case. The Suffolk County district attorney’s office says DNA from hair found near Costilla and Taylor’s remains and pick-up truck evidence connect Heuermann to their killings. Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Dec. 17, 2024: Heuermann charged with 7th killing
Heuermann was charged with killing Valerie Mack, a 24-year-old from New Jersey who had been working as an escort in the Philadelphia area, in 2000. For years, she was known only as “Jane Doe #6.” Her partial remains were found in Manorville, Long Island, in 2000, and more of her remains were found on Gilgo Beach more than 10 years later.
April 8, 2026: Heuermann pleads guilty
Heuermann, 62, pleaded guilty to killing seven women between 1993 and 2011 and admitted he killed an eighth. He said he strangled each of them. He previously pleaded not guilty.
Heuermann was arrested in 2023 in the murders of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello. He was later charged with the murders of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Sandra Costilla, Jessica Taylor, and Valerie Mack. The judge says Heuermann pleaded guilty to 7 counts in the indictment and admitted guilt in the killing of an eighth victim, Karen Vergata.