Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach
Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach
WABC-TV
The news coverage of the Gilgo Beach murders began with a single live shot: a live remote, plagued with technical difficulties, from a barren and frozen beach off Long Island's South Shore. Little did anyone know how important that report would be. No one could have predicted the international spectacle that would follow. That first report was on an impossibly cold December night in 2011. They had found bodies on a remote Long Island beach. And soon, more bones turned up in the sand. It was a serial killer's graveyard by the sea. The story of the Gilgo Beach murders - and the hunt for the suspect - is as convoluted as it is creepy, and Eyewitness News tells it like nobody else. From the first gruesome discoveries to an arrest more than 12 years later, our team of reporters describes the twists and turns of covering a true crime mystery in real time. Follow "Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach" now and never miss a new episode of our true crime series.
Rex Heuermann admits he was Gilgo Beach serial killer in milestone for grieving families
Rex Heuermann admitted Wednesday to murdering eight women during a 17-year killing spree that terrorized Long Island and labeled him the Gilgo Beach serial killer. Several of the victims' relatives sobbed quietly and were seen wiping tears as Heuermann admitted to the rash of killings beginning in 1993 and concluding in 2010. The killings went unsolved for two decades until the Suffolk County district attorney's office, New York State Police and the FBI first identified Heuermann as a suspect in 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 8
9 min
How a hair tied 7th murder to alleged Gilgo serial killer
Accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann has been charged in the death of a seventh woman. Heuermann is charged with one count of second-degree murder in connection with the murder of Valerie Mack, according to a superseding indictment unsealed Tuesday. Mack, whose remains were first found on Long Island in 2000. Mack, 24, had been working as an escort in Philadelphia and was last seen by her family that year in New Jersey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 19, 2024
11 min
A face but no name: New sketch released of male Gilgo Beach victim
Even though there has been an arrest in the Gilgo Beach serial killings, investigators are still trying to solve cold-case murders and authorities are asking for the public's help. On Monday, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney released three new updated sketches of a Gilgo Beach victim. The Asian male victim's remains were recovered along Ocean Parkway in April 2011. However, authorities say he was killed during or prior to 2006. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sep 16, 2024
8 min
7,000 tips, 350 electronic devices
Suffolk County prosecutors have received some 7,000 tips following the arrest of alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann, district attorney Ray Tierney said after his latest court appearance. Prosecutors turned over "voluminous" evidence to Heuermann's defense, including results from DNA lab work, data from Heuermann's electronic devices, and notes from searches of his home. Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to killing multiple women. His next court date is scheduled for October. No trial date has been set. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jul 31, 2024
9 min
Rex Heuermann Case: What his wife and children think
Rex Heuermann, the accused Gilgo Beach serial killer charged in six killings is now being eyed by investigators for even more, nearly one year to the day that the Manhattan architect, husband, and father of two was arrested. Heuermann's adult children - and his now-estranged wife, Asa Ellerup, showed support at court. Robert Macedonio, Asa's attorney, talked with Eyewitness News reporter, Chantee Lans, about what the past year has been like for the family. "Complete shock. The world was turned upside-down in the last year." Listen to the podcast and make sure you're following for future episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jul 18, 2024
7 min
Sickening 'planning document' of death revealed as alleged Gilgo killer charged in 2 more murders
Disturbing new details have emerged in the Gilgo Beach serial killings as Rex Heuermann, 60, was charged in two additional women. The new charges also significantly expand the timeline in the Gilgo Beach case, with the first murder Heuermann is accused of committing now taking place in 1993. Prosecutors also revealed disturbing "planning" documents that they allege the suspect used in his killings and disposal of the victims. The architect and father allegedly "meticulously planned and executed six separate murders," Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney said at a news conference Thursday. Heuermann appeared before a judge on Long Island to face charges in the killings of Jessica Taylor and Sandra Costilla, two young women who were long suspected of being the victims of men preying on sex workers. Listen to our latest "Eyewitness News to Gilgo Beach" episode and make sure you follow us to catch future episodes or listen to our archives explaining the case as only New York's Eyewitness News can. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jun 6, 2024
25 min
BREAKING UPDATE: Rex Heuermann expected to be charged in additional murder
Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann is expected to be charged this week with an additional murder, according to Newsday. Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to killing four women -- Megan Waterman, Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Costello, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes - whose remains were found near Gilgo Beach along Ocean Parkway. Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney declined to comment. Word of the new indictment follows searches by the Gilgo Beach Task Force at Heuermann's Massapequa Park home and a wooded area of Manorville where the remains of two women were previously found. Heuermann had been scheduled to appear in court on June 18 but is now expected to be arraigned on the new charge on Thursday, June 6. Listen to this breaking update in the latest installment of "Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jun 3, 2024
7 min
'I used to buy him that pizza': Rex Heuermann's still-shocked ex-secretary speaks out
The former executive assistant of accused Long Island serial killer Rex Heuermann is speaking for the first time exclusively with Eyewitness News. Donna Sturman told investigative reporter Kristin Thorne she still has not gotten over the shock of the claims made against her former boss. "It's traumatizing," she said. "It's so unbelievable." Sturman worked for Heuermann from 2017 to 2018 at his architectural office in Midtown. She said the irony is not lost on her that it was DNA from a discarded piece of pizza crust that prosecutors have used to tie Heuermann to the Gilgo Beach murders. He has plead not guilty to all the charges. Listen to her story in the latest installment of "Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 17, 2024
9 min
Chapter 9: Who is Rex Heuermann?
"Rex Heuermann is everything we've been led to believe would be the guy," said reporter Josh Einiger. "He's kind of a loner. He's kind of antisocial. His house is different from every other house on that block. It's sort of a mess. He works in the city. He has a job, where he's very technical, where he's an architect and engineer." The amazing details of the investigation that finally collared a suspect in the longtime cold case. Never miss a future episode of "Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach" - hit follow for all upcoming installments of our series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 14, 2024
13 min
Chapter 8: Out of the blue, a Gilgo Beach arrest
On July 13, 2023, police finally made an arrest in the Gilgo Beach murder case. "This was an earthquake in Massapequa Park. This was a storm like they had never expected this," recalled Eyewitness News reporter Stacey Sager. Rex Heuermann was arrested in Midtown Manhattan. He was initially charged in the deaths of Megan Waterman, Amber Lynn Costello, and Melissa Barthelemy. Investigators also named him as the prime suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes. The next episode of "Eyewitness to Gilgo Beach" drops Thursday, March 14. Never miss an episode - hit follow for all future installments of our series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 7, 2024
11 min
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