For an extended period, a disturbing pattern of disappearances involving women on Long Island left authorities and families in despair. The situation escalated in 2010 when investigators searching for a missing woman uncovered ten sets of human remains along the remote Gilgo Beach area, situated near a parkway on a barrier island. Almost instantly, the police believed that these tragic discoveries were linked to a possible serial killer.
Over the years, law enforcement utilized DNA testing and multiple investigative leads to identify victims, a majority of whom had been engaged in sex work. There were instances where connections were made between newly discovered remains and cases that had gone unsolved for years on Long Island. Consequently, the police also revisited several other unsolved murders of women reported in the same region.
Recently, a Long Island architect named Rex Heuermann has been charged in connection with seven homicides linked to this unsettling case.
Here’s a detailed timeline highlighting key moments in the investigation:
On November 20, 1993, hunters stumbled upon the body of 28-year-old Sandra Costilla in a wooded region of North Sea, found in the Hamptons, close to Long Island’s eastern tip. Costilla had previously been residing in New York City.
Fast forward to April 20, 1996, when the partial remains of Karen Vergata were unearthed on Fire Island. The identity remained unknown until 2022, when new DNA techniques enabled investigators to link her to the case. Vergata, aged 34, lost contact with her family on February 14, 1996, while she was involved in sex work.
On June 28, 1997, investigators discovered the remains of a woman, dubbed “Peaches” due to a distinctive tattoo, concealed within a plastic container in a West Hempstead state park. To date, her true identity remains a mystery.
In September 2000, the partial skeletal remains of Valerie Mack, who had been an escort in Philadelphia, were found in a wooded section of Manorville, New York. Mack, who was 24, had last been seen by her family during the spring or summer of that same year in Port Republic, New Jersey.
On July 26, 2003, the skeletal remains of 20-year-old Jessica Taylor were discovered in a wooded area in Manorville. Like others, she was also working as an escort in New York City when she disappeared.
On July 9, 2007, 25-year-old Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who traveled from Norwich, Connecticut to engage in sex work, was last heard from by a friend while leaving her hotel to meet a client. Investigators identified that her phone was last active in Long Island.
The following day, on July 10, 2009, 24-year-old Melissa Barthelemy, another sex worker, was last seen at her Bronx apartment. She informed a friend that she was meeting a man and would return the next morning. Phone records later confirmed that her last location was also on Long Island. Days after her disappearance, individuals began making sinister calls to her family using her mobile phone.
On May 1, 2010, Shannan Gilbert, a sex worker, vanished in Oak Beach, New York. She had fled from a client’s house and was heard on a 911 call expressing fear and confusion, insisting that she was being pursued but declining help from nearby individuals.
Then, on June 6, 2010, 22-year-old Megan Waterman, who had traveled from Maine for work, was reported missing from a motel in Hauppauge, New York.
By September 2, 2010, Amber Lynn Costello, aged 27, was last seen as she left her residence in West Babylon to meet a potential client. A male acquaintance reported seeing a Chevrolet Avalanche nearby, likely connected to her disappearance.
On December 11, 2010, while conducting a training drill on Ocean Parkway, a police dog uncovered Barthelemy’s remains.
Barely two days later, authorities found the remains of Costello, Brainard-Barnes, and Waterman in the same vicinity along Ocean Parkway where Barthelemy had been discovered.
On December 14, 2010, Suffolk County’s police chief confirmed the grim findings and proposed that a serial killer might be involved as the search expanded to recover more victims and to find Gilbert.
By March 29, 2011, some of Jessica Taylor’s remains were identified along Ocean Parkway.
On April 4, 2011, additional skeletal remains of Valerie Mack were recovered along with those of an unidentified young girl, later recognized as the child of “Peaches.” Other remains of an unidentified Asian male were also found, who has yet to be identified.
On April 11, 2011, more fragments of Karen Vergata were discovered further down Ocean Parkway, along with parts of “Peaches.”
The investigation took a turn on December 13, 2011, when Shannan Gilbert’s remains were found in a tidal marsh near Oak Beach. Following an autopsy, authorities determined she likely drowned, although her family raises doubts about this conclusion.
In January 2022, a new task force was assembled by the Suffolk County district attorney to reexamine the Gilgo Beach homicides.
On July 13, 2023, Rex Heuermann was taken into custody and charged with the murders of Costello, Waterman, and Barthelemy. Crucial evidence involved mobile location data suggesting he had been in close vicinity to the women at some critical times and DNA found on the remains.
On January 16, 2024, Heuermann faced additional charges regarding the death of Brainard-Barnes, with prosecutors stating that hair linked genetically to his wife had been found near her remains.
Toward the end of April 2024, detectives initiated a fresh multi-day search in Manorville, revisiting sites where remains of Taylor and Mack were uncovered over a decade prior. They also looked into the area where Costilla’s body was found back in 1993.
By May 20, 2024, law enforcement conducted an exhaustive search of Heuermann’s residence lasting almost a week.
On June 6, 2024, Heuermann was charged with murdering both Costilla and Taylor, to which he entered a not guilty plea.
Finally, on December 17, 2024, an unsealed indictment implicated Heuermann in Mack’s death, while he continued to plead not guilty.
