Rex Heuermann, alleged Gilgo Beach murderer, says nothing at court; huge amount of evidence disclosed by Suffolk County prosecutors
NEW YORK — A Long Island prosecutor spoke for the entire hearing Tuesday as Rex Heuermann, the accused Gilgo Beach killer, remained silent in a Suffolk County courtroom after his attorney received some of their huge pile of evidence in the horrific cold case. Heuermann, 59, had a blank look on his face at the hearing where he showed up in handcuffs, with a chain around his ankles, to answer to murder charges in the deaths of three Long Island sex workers more than 10 years ago.
The defendant, wearing a dark blue blazer, button-down shirt and sneakers, only briefly looked back at the crowded courtroom where Suffolk District Attorney Raymond Tierney said some relatives of the victims were present.
“We have a lot of information, evidence, photographs, reports to give to the defense counsel,” said Tierney. “It is a huge amount of material, to say the least.” Heuermann is charged with killing Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Lynn Costello, who all vanished over a 14-month period in 2009 and 2010. The cases remained unsolved until Suffolk County police reopened the investigation in 2022, and the Long Island father of two was arrested a year later.
Prosecutors say Heuermann is still the main suspect in the death of a fourth woman, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who was last seen alive on July 9, 2007. Her remains were discovered in the same isolated area of Ocean Parkway as the other three victims.
Assistant District Attorney Nicholas Santomartino handled the hearing for prosecutors, stating that authorities had given the defense more than 2,500 pages of documents, along with about 100 hours of surveillance video taken outside the suspect’s home and office before his July 13 arrest.
The hearing began about 30 minutes late as prosecutors met privately with defense attorney Michael Brown and Judge Timothy Mazzei. The two sides agreed on a confidentiality deal that prevented the sharing of any copies of evidence with the public.
The towering 6-foot-7 defendant pleaded not guilty one day after he was arrested on a Manhattan street as he left his real estate office on Fifth Ave. “He’s a man who has never been arrested before,” said Brown. “He’s claimed his innocence from the start of this case. So he’s doing as well as he can at this point in time. He’s eager to have his day in court.”
Heuermann was scheduled for his next hearing on Sept. 27, and Brown said his client wanted a trial instead of taking any plea deal. Police finally caught the elusive serial killer suspect based on a tip from a Long Island pimp, a DNA sample from a pizza crust and his own incriminating internet searches about the crimes and his victims.
Investigators searched his suburban Massapequa Park home for 12 days, with authorities saying they found a “massive amount” of evidence inside the house. It was unclear if the killings happened inside the defendant’s suburban home, where authorities found nearly 300 guns and a walk-in vault in the basement. Authorities said after Heuermann’s arrest that he was also a suspect in another six unsolved killings where bodies were found near the same area of suburban Suffolk County.
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