Rex Heuermann pleaded not guilty to six murder charges in connection with three of the Gilgo Four. Authorities revealed how cell phone pings and selfies led to his arrest.

Rex Heuermann has been officially named and charged for the murders committed by three of the Gilgo Four.

Heuermann pleaded not guilty to six counts of murder on Friday in a court hearing after being charged with the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello. Heuermann has not been charged in relation to the death of the fourth victim Maureen Brainard Barnes, but his bail application stated that he is the "prime suspicion" for her murder.

Michael Brown, speaking with NBC about his client's case, said: "I can tell you that this is a very circumstantial matter." As I spoke to my client in tears, the only thing that he said was "I didn't commit this."

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Heuermann was first implicated in the murders of four women, who were escorts, found along Long Island's Ocean Parkway, after Shannan Gilbert disappeared. Her remains were later discovered nearby. The authorities previously stated that they did not believe Gilbert had been murdered and said it was just a coincidence she died in the area.

Heuermann was the first to be investigated after a task force comprised of the Suffolk County Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with New York State Police and Suffolk County Sheriff's Office, was formed in 2022. Then, they learned that the suspect was driving a Chevy at the time of his murders. Costello was reported missing by a witness who had previously identified the same model and make as that driven by the killer.

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In response, "300 subpoenas were issued, along with search warrants and legal processes for obtaining evidence." Authorities claim that Heuermann’s cell phone bill corresponded with locations where "burner cellphones" were used to set up meetings with three out of four victims. They also claimed to have matched calls made to a victim's relative, a detective's call to Barthelemy, and a check of voicemails on Brainard-Barnes 's phone following 's disappearance.

Heuermann is believed to have used the phones of two victims after they died to check their voicemails, taunt Barthelemy and make calls to Melissa's younger sister in her cell phone. He "admits killing and sexually abusing" her.

In the documents, the court noted that Heuermann's physical appearance "mirrors" the physical attributes of Costello client, who was described as a "large white male in his mid-40s, about 6'4"-6'6", with "dark bushy" hair and "big oval 1970's style eyeglasses." The witness described him as "ogre."

Travel records showed that the wife of the suspect was also out-of-town when all three women vanished.

Investigators also say Heuermann was seen on surveillance video adding more minutes to a burner cellphone that was used for a number of "prostitution-related contacts." A separate email account, allegedly linked to the phone, was used to conduct "thousands" of searches on sex workers, torture pornography, and child pornography. The majority of queries were related to children younger than 13 years old, as well as searches such as "mistress Long Island," "tied-up porn," and nude slave girls.

From March to June 20, 2022, more than 200 searches were linked to the email account of a Gilgo murders taskforce. These searches related to "active serial killers", the ongoing investigation by the task force and the names and locations of victims ( and).

Other search terms include: "why couldn't law enforcement trace the calls made the Long Island serial murderer," "In Long Island Serial Killer Investigation, New Phone Technology May Be Key To Break In Case," "why hasn’t the Long Island serial killer been caught," and "8 Terrifying active serial killers (We Can't Locate).

Authorities claim that an AOL account linked to the same phone also included selfies, which "appeared to be taken by defendant Rex Heuermann" and "sent to others to solicit and arrange sexual activity." These pictures are shown at the top of the article. They were provided by investigators.

Heuermann was said to have had the burner phone when he arrested.

The DNA evidence.

Investigators collected DNA from the crust of a pizza box Heuermann had thrown away and sent it for testing. The lab findings showed that the mitochondrial DNA was "the exact same" as hairs found on a bag used to "restrain Megan Waterman’s naked and dead body."

The DNA from the bottles found in the garbage outside Heuermann’s house was also analyzed. This produced a profile of a woman living at the home. This profile matched the hair of a woman whose hair had also been found at each crime scene. Investigators believe that the sample was from Heuermann’s wife. They added that since she wasn't in town when the murders took place, certain items from the home were used.

Heuermann will appear before the court next on August 1 without bail.

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Title: Gilgo Beach Murder Suspect Used Victim's Phones to Taunt Families, Disturbing Internet Searches Revealed: Court Docs
Sourced From: www.toofab.com/2023/07/14/rex-heuermann-charged-gilgo-beach-murders/
Published Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2023 22:03:19 +0000

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