Whether or not or not legislation enforcement shocked Rex Heuermann after they arrested the architect outdoors his midtown Manhattan workplace for murdering the “Gilgo 4”, Suffolk County prosecutors’ software to maintain the alleged “Lengthy Island Serial Killer” behind bars with out bail tells a damning and compelling narrative of the beachside homicides. Known as the “Manorville Butcher” and “Craigslist Ripper” within the media, a Suffolk County Grand Jury indicted Heuermann, a resident of Massapequa, on three counts of each First and Second Diploma Homicide for the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy on or about July 10, 2009, Megan Waterman on or about June 6, 2010, and Amber Costello on or about September 2, 2010. Though Suffolk County District Legal professional Raymond A. Tierney has not charged Heuermann with the homicide of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, or different murders some consider are tied to Heuermann, his software to have Heuermann remanded, or held with out bail, made it clear that their investigation into Brainard-Barne’s demise “is continuous and is anticipated to be resolved quickly.”
The next is a short examination of the joint investigation by county, state, and federal legislation enforcement, the proof and strategies pursued to safe it, and the crimes and penalty Heuermann faces. As we be taught extra and discover out what, if something, search warrants at Heuermann’s residence reveal, there could also be many extra questions requested, however hopefully extra answered as effectively.
The Investigation: Figuring out a Suspect & Catching a Goal
In keeping with the bail software, in January 2022, Suffolk County prosecutors teamed up with the Suffolk County Police and Sherriff’s Workplace, New York State Police, and the FBI to establish and apprehend the “Gilgo 4” killer after years of no success. Upon analyzing the proof they needed to date, together with the burlap wraps and duct tape used on the ladies, together with the issuance and evaluation of over 300 subpoenas, search warrants, eyewitness accounts, and different proof, legislation enforcement apprehended the person they consider dedicated atrocities towards harmless ladies and preyed on residents of Lengthy Island.
First-Era Chevrolet Avalanche: A Place to Begin
Based mostly on a witness report of a Chevrolet Avalanche believed to have been pushed by the one who kidnapped Costello, legislation enforcement tried to establish who may personal such a automobile. Although not scientific, this crucial piece of proof set the stage for far more to return. With this info in hand, on March 14, 2022, legislation enforcement discovered that Heuermann had a first-generation Avalanche registered to him on the time of the murders.
Cell Web site Data & Cellular Telephone Billing Data
Although not capable of instantly tie cellular phone calls and texts between the victims and Heuermann to the now jailed defendant, the knowledge retrieved throughout this stage within the investigation was tremendously useful in circumstantially tying Heuermann to the crimes earlier than securing the DNA proof that can little question be the middle piece of prosecutors’ case. Extra particularly, cellular phone name and textual content historical past, in addition to cell website location info, or CSLI, helped legislation enforcement establish places and occasions calls have been made to and from the events to assist corroborate their leads and open new investigatory avenues. As mirrored on this case and investigation, the worth of CSLI can’t be understated. Although not figuring out a reasonably precise coordinate of a telephone’s utilization resembling with GPS, CSLI can provide an approximate location of when and the place a cellular phone was utilized by triangulating the information with a number of towers.
Right here, of crucial import, cell website info circumstantially ties telephones’ usages close to Heuermann’s workplace in Manhattan and his residence on Lengthy Island, together with the sufferer’s telephones.
Brainard-Barnes: Cell Telephone Proof
Within the days resulting in her disappearance, there have been sixteen interactions between Heuermann’s burner telephone and Brainard-Barne’s cell, the final of which was in Manhattan close to the 59th Avenue Bridge. Days after her disappearance, two outbound calls have been made out of her telephone to examine voice mail from a cell website close to the Lengthy Island Expressway in Islandia.
Barthelemy: Cell Telephone Proof
Within the days main as much as and together with July 10, 2009 when Barthelemy was final seen, a burner telephone contacted her not less than 4 occasions. Cell website information mirrored that this telephone went from Massapequa Park, close to the place Heuermann lived, and Midtown Manhattan earlier than returning to Massapequa. Beginning the next day, further calls have been made out of Massqpequa, Freeport, and Babylon. On a number of events days later, taunting calls and admissions to sexually assaulting and killing Barthelemy have been made out of her telephone to members of the family. Based mostly on cell website info, these calls have been made out of Midtown Manhattan.
Waterman: Cell Telephone Proof
On June 5, 2010, and the subsequent day when Waterman was final seen alive at a Vacation Inn in Hauppauge, a burner telephone, activated that day, contacted her cellphone. Waterman was captured on video leaving the resort across the similar time the burner telephone made contact. Although the burner telephone had no extra exercise after this name, cell website info revealed that Waterman’s telephone traveled to Massapequa Park within the neighborhood of Heuermann’s residence.
Costello: Cell Telephone Proof
On the day earlier than and when Costello was final seen alive, a burner telephone made contact along with her telephone. Cell website info indicated that the towers that linked with the burner telephone have been in West Amityville and Massapequa Park. The cellular phone proceeded to maneuver to the neighborhood of Costello’s residence in West Babylon.
In keeping with a witness, on or about September 1st or 2nd, a prostitution shopper, or “John”, went to her residence and a good friend, pretending to be Costello’s boyfriend, acted as if he was enraged on this shock go to by a person for intercourse in an effort to get cash from the “John” earlier than scaring him away. Witnesses described this particular person as 6’4” to six’6”, mid 40s, and with darkish bushy hair – all in keeping with Heuermann’s look. Moreover, this particular person parked a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche in her driveway. After leaving, the burner telephone despatched a message to Costello in substance saying what occurred was not good and he wished a credit score. This message was despatched from Massapequa Park.
The next day on September 2, 2010, the burner cell reached out from Midtown Manhattan earlier than travelling once more to Massapequa Park, close to Costello’s residence in West Babylon. Although she left the cellular phone behind, a witnesses noticed a darkish coloured truck go the house coming from the place Costello walked.
Heuermann’s Spouse: Cell Telephone Proof
Based mostly on both cellular phone and/or journey information, on the time of Barthelemy, Waterman, and Costello’s disappearances, Heuermann’s spouse was both in another country or out of the state.
This proof corroborates that Heuermann had the chance to perpetrate his alleged crimes.
Heuermann: Cell Telephone Proof
Although cell website information don’t exist for all legislation enforcement’s queries, billing information, together with American Categorical statements, point out that Heuermann was in the identical basic places because the burner telephones used to contact Barthelemy, Waterman, and Costello, together with each Barthelemy and Brainard-Barnes’ cellphones on the time and place they have been used to entry their respective voicemail and make the purported tormenting calls. The Suffolk County District Legal professional’s Workplace bail software illustrated quite a few examples corroborating these occasions and places.
Heuermann: Put up-Disappearance Cell Telephone, Electronic mail & On-line Proof
Much like the burner telephones used years earlier, cell website info for telephones related to Heuermann’s burner telephones, pretend e mail accounts, and a Tinder profile from 2022 indicated utilization within the Midtown Manhattan and Massapequa Park areas. Extra particularly, the cellphones routinely utilized the mobile towers close to his residence and New York Metropolis Workplace.
Additional investigation revealed {that a} explicit e mail account made 1000’s of searches associated to intercourse staff, baby pornography, and torture. A few of these queries included, “fairly woman bruised face porn”, “tied up and raped porn”, “Woman with face beat up”, “Chubby 10 yr outdated woman crying” and different objectively disturbing searches. Arguably extra damning, between March 2022 and June 2023, this e mail remodeled two-hundred searches associated to every of the ladies together with, “why may legislation enforcement not hint the calls made by the lengthy island serial killer”, “why hasn’t the lengthy island serial killer been caught”, and the names of a few of the ladies and their kinfolk. Heuermann allegedly even looked for info on the duty pressure investigating him. Moreover, legislation enforcement obtained footage from Could of 2023 of Heuermann buying further minutes for one of many telephones.
Armed with this info, legislation enforcement additionally obtained he IP info for the e-mail account that finally led again to Heuermann’s residence in addition to the IP accessing GilgoNews.Com, a Suffolk County Police Division’s web site that posted details about the investigation.
Strands of Hair & DNA: Heuermann’s Spouse
Though not appropriate for DNA testing on the time a possible suspect’s hair was recovered on Barnes, Waterman, and Costello, someday after July 22, forensic evaluation revealed that a few of these hairs belonged to a feminine in mitochondrial haplogroup K1c2. Equally vital, the hairs didn’t belong to any of the victims.
In an effort to establish or match the DNA, detectives retrieved eleven bottles from Heuermann’s trash outdoors his residence. The DNA profile generated from swabs from these bottles revealed that an individual who drank from them belonged to mitochondrial haplogroup K1c2 – the identical because the hairs recovered from the victims. This discovering was confirmed by a second forensic laboratory. The second examination decided that the DNA recovered from the bottles and that of the hair on the victims was the identical mitochondrial DNA profiles “in any respect in contrast positions widespread to and between samples” excluding 99.69% to 99.98% of the North American inhabitants.
As a result of Heuermann’s spouse was away through the murders, it was theorized that the devices used to commit or cowl up the crimes – burlap sack and tape – got here from Heuermann’s residence.
Further Hair & DNA: Heuermann & Pizza
Along with the feminine hair, legislation enforcement additionally collected hair tangled within the burlap wrap used to cowl Waterman. When despatched out for additional evaluation, it was decided that the hair belonged to a male in mitochondrial haplogroup V7a. In an try to match the DNA to Heuermann, legislation enforcement surveilled him and retrieved a pizza field from the rubbish outdoors his workplace. Armed with a swab from the pizza crust, the forensic lab decided that the hair recovered from the burlap had the identical mitochondrial DNA profile as Heuermann and will exclude 99.96% of the North American inhabitants.
Whereas all of the proof above is usually circumstantial even when a few of it’s scientific and fairly sturdy, prosecutors now had what they wanted – direct and overwhelming proof attempting Heuermann to the murders of not less than three of the “Gilgo 4”.
The Crimes: First & Second Diploma Homicide
Though there are numerous subsections of every crime, the Suffolk County Grand Jury indicted Heuermann for violating Penal Legislation 125.27(1)(a)(xi), First Diploma Homicide, and Penal Legislation 125.25(1), Second Diploma Homicide. Although a Grand Jury will not be tasked with discovering proof past an affordable doubt, they need to discover that there’s cheap trigger to consider that an accused dedicated a specific felony. It’s only a trial the place prosecutors should set up this greater burden of proof.
New York Penal Legislation 125.27(1)(a)(xi)
To ensure that a jury to search out Heuermann responsible of Homicide within the First Diploma, the District Legal professional’s Workplace should show that Heuermann supposed to trigger the demise of every of the ladies and in reality prompted their deaths. Moreover, this subsection requires that he prompted the demise of two or extra further folks withing New York State in separate occasions or transactions inside a timeframe of two years and did so pursuant to a typical scheme or plan.
Within the occasion a jury finds that every of the weather weren’t met, for instance, solely discovering that the prosecution proved one homicide past an affordable doubt or that there was not a typical scheme or plan, prosecutors may nonetheless safe a conviction for Homicide within the Second Diploma.
New York Penal Legislation 125.25(1)
A far simpler crime to show with out the wanted proof of further murders or a typical scheme or plan, a jury should solely discover that Heuermann supposed to kill or trigger the demise of one of many ladies and in reality took not less than one among their lives.
Potential Sentence
Each class A-1 violent felonies, simply because the statutes have considerably totally different parts, their potential punishment additionally differ. Whereas the legislation mandates a compulsory minimal of fifteen years incarceration and as much as twenty-five years to life for Second Diploma Homicide, First Diploma Homicide permits for all times with out parole. In different phrases, an individual convicted of the previous offense may at some point be paroled, whereas the latter crime doesn’t permit a parole board to weigh this chance. That stated, although New York State doesn’t have the demise penalty, even when Heuermann is acquitted of Homicide within the First Diploma, a choose may “stack” the convictions with consecutive sentences thereby giving Heuermann the purposeful equal of life with out parole.
What Comes Subsequent
With Heuermann again in courtroom on August 1, 2023, and prosecutors reviewing proof retrieved from Heuermann residence after detectives executed a search warrant at his residence, the case is much from over. Will the indictment be outmoded so as to add Brainard-Barne or different potential victims? From District Legal professional Tierney’s feedback, it appears fairly potential. Will Heuermann take a plea or train his proper to a trial figuring out {that a} conviction for any one among these costs may imply life in jail as a result of his age?
No matter occurs, there may be little doubt there are households and communities that hope this arrest, and potential conviction, will present some deserved closure even when it doesn’t reply questions on different unsolved murders which have washed up upon on Lengthy Island’s shores that Heuermann could, or could not, have perpetrated.
Jeremy Saland is a New York prison protection lawyer and former Manhattan prosecutor.