Rex Heuerman

The Gilgo Beach Serial Killer

By SyndicatedNews True Crime | SNN.BZ

Rex Andrew Heuermann, a longtime Long Island architect, stands accused of being the perpetrator behind a string of murders linked to the Gilgo Beach serial killings on New York’s South Shore. Charged with seven counts of murder spanning 1993 to 2010, Heuermann was arrested in 2023 after decades of investigation. As of April 1, 2026, he remains in custody and is expected to plead guilty to all charges at his next court appearance on April 8, 2026, which would likely result in a sentence of life without parole.

Early Life (1963–1980s)

Rex Heuermann was born on September 13, 1963, in Massapequa Park, Nassau County, New York, where he lived for nearly his entire life. His father, an aerospace engineer, died on November 29, 1975, when Heuermann was 12 years old. Heuermann graduated from Berner High School in Massapequa in May 1981. That summer, he worked as a seasonal employee at Jones Beach State Park. He took a full-time position there on March 5, 1984, but left on October 24, 1987, to begin his career in Manhattan architecture.

Education, Career Beginnings, and First Marriage (Late 1980s–Early 1990s)

Heuermann earned a degree in architectural technology from the New York Institute of Technology in Westbury, New York. By late 1987, he was working as an architect intern at Greer Construction Corp. in Freeport, NY. On September 29, 1990, he married his first wife in New Brunswick, New Jersey; the marriage ended in divorce in 1991. In 1994, he incorporated his own firm, RH Consultants & Associates, and purchased the family home in Massapequa Park from his mother for $170,000.

Second Marriage, Family Life, and Professional Rise (Mid-1990s–2010s)

On April 13, 1996, Heuermann married his second wife, Asa Ellerup. They raised two children together—a daughter, Victoria (born 1996), and a stepson—in the same Massapequa Park house where Heuermann had grown up. He obtained his New York State architecture license on November 4, 1996, and built a career as a registered architect with over 30 years of experience operating out of Manhattan. Neighbors and colleagues described him as a quiet family man who tinkered in his father’s old workshop.

During this period, family travel records show routine trips, including a 2009 family vacation to Iceland and later visits to Las Vegas and Florida. He also obtained an Alaska hunting license in 2010.

The Alleged Murder Spree (1993–2010)

Prosecutors allege Heuermann’s crimes began in the early 1990s and continued for nearly two decades, targeting women—most of whom were sex workers—whose remains were later found near Gilgo Beach or Manorville, New York.

November 19–20, 1993: Sandra Costilla, 28, disappears and her body is found the next day in a wooded area in North Sea (Hamptons), about 60 miles from Gilgo Beach.
2000: Valerie Mack, 24, disappears; partial remains are discovered November 19, 2000, in Manorville. Additional remains surface in 2011 near Gilgo Beach (identified via forensic genealogy in 2020).
July 21–26, 2003: Jessica Taylor, 20, is last seen at Manhattan’s Port Authority Bus Terminal. Her torso is found July 26, 2003, in Manorville; further remains appear in March 2011 near Gilgo Beach.
July 9, 2007: Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25 (mother of two), is last seen in a Manhattan hotel after traveling from Connecticut for a Craigslist-arranged client meeting.
July 12, 2009: Melissa Barthelemy, 24, is last seen outside her Bronx apartment. Her family later received taunting calls from her phone.
June 6, 2010: Megan Waterman, 22 (a victim of sex trafficking and single mother), is last seen at a Hauppauge, New York, hotel.
September 2, 2010: Amber Costello, 27, leaves her West Babylon home for a $1,500 client meeting and is never seen again.

Heuermann’s wife and children were reportedly out of state during several of these incidents.

Discovery of the Bodies and the Long Island Serial Killer Investigation (2010–2022)

The case exploded into public view in late 2010 during the search for missing escort Shannan Gilbert (not charged to Heuermann). On December 11–13, 2010, police found the bodies of Barthelemy, Brainard-Barnes, Waterman, and Costello—known as the “Gilgo Four”—wrapped in burlap and dumped within a quarter-mile stretch along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach. Additional remains, including those of Taylor and Mack, were discovered in 2011.

The investigation dragged on for over a decade. In February 2022, a multi-agency task force formed and identified Heuermann as a suspect by March 2022 after linking a dark green Chevrolet Avalanche registered to him to one of the crime scenes.

Arrest and Escalating Charges (2023–2024)

On July 13, 2023, 59-year-old Heuermann was arrested in Midtown Manhattan outside his office and charged with the first-degree and second-degree murders of Barthelemy, Waterman, and Costello.

January 16, 2024: Charged in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes.
June 6, 2024: Charged with the murders of Jessica Taylor and Sandra Costilla.
December 17, 2024: Indicted for the 2000 murder of Valerie Mack—bringing the total to seven victims.

Evidence cited by prosecutors includes DNA matches (including hairs linked to Heuermann and his wife), cellphone records showing contact with victims, a vehicle tied to a pickup, and digital searches for the investigation and sadistic content.

Court Proceedings and Current Status (2024–2026)

Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to all counts and has been held without bail in Suffolk County Correctional Facility. A judge ruled the seven cases would be tried together. In September 2025, the court allowed advanced DNA evidence. A trial had been scheduled for September 2026, but in late March 2026, sources reported Heuermann intends to change his plea to guilty at the April 8, 2026, hearing.

The case has drawn intense scrutiny for its reliance on familial DNA, cellphone data, and the decades-long gap between the crimes and arrest. Families of the victims have awaited justice for years. As the April 8 court date approaches, the long-running saga of the Gilgo Beach killings appears poised for resolution.