'Significant development' in case against accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann

ByEyewitness News WABC logo
Tuesday, December 17, 2024 1:19PM
Prosecutors expected to announce major development in Gilgo Beach investigation
Raegan Medgie has the latest in Riverhead.

RIVERHEAD, Long Island (WABC) -- Prosecutors on Long Island planned on Tuesday to announce a "significant development" in their case against accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office.

The architect and father has pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the murders of six women whose remains were found in a remote spot along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach and parts of eastern Long Island

Prosecutors have also linked him to the death of several other unsolved killings, including that of Valerie Mack, a New Jersey woman whose remains were discovered in Manorville and near Gilgo Beach. Like the other women, she prosecutors have said she was also involved in sex work.

Prosecutors named Heuermann a suspect in Mack's death in June based on evidence allegedly found an electronic device seized from Heuermann's home in Massapequa Park. Prosecutors have said Heuermann kept detailed notes about serial killings, body disposal and torture pornography.

A spokeswoman for Suffolk County DA Ray Tierney declined to comment.

Heuermann, 61, is scheduled to appear in court in Riverhead at 9:30.

The Suffolk County District Attorney's Office scheduled a news conference alongside local and state law enforcement to follow Heuermann's morning court appearance but did not elaborate on what the announcement about the development would entail.

In addition to Mack, prosecutors are also looking into the death of Karen Vergata, whose remains were first discovered in 1996 and finally identified in 2022 after a new DNA analysis.

In September, authorities released new renderings of an unidentified victim who was found in 2011. Officials said the victim, who for years they had identified as male, may have presented outwardly as female and died in 2006.

Heuermann was initially charged in the deaths of three women in 2023, and was subsequently charged in three more earlier this year. In a court filing for the most recent charges, prosecutors said they had recovered a file on a hard drive in Heuermann's basement that he used to "methodically blueprint" his killings - including checklists with tasks to tick off before, during and afterwards, as well as lessons for "next time."

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Some information from ABC News and the Associated Press


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