The Long Island, New York, home of Rex Heuermann, an architect arrested last week in connection with the Gilgo Beach murders, is being combed by investigators ― and they’re searching for “trophies” of his alleged crimes inside.
“We’re looking for potential trophies, souvenirs, jewelry, anything that could be attached to the four women or other women that he might have been involved with,” an investigator told CBS News on Thursday about the Massapequa Park crime scene.
“In the coming days, as we continue to gather evidence, anything is possible,” another investigator told the outlet.
Heuermann, 59, was arrested last Thursday and charged the following day with three counts each of first-degree and second-degree murder. Police allege he killed at least three of the many victims found buried on Gilgo Beach between December 2010 and April 2011.
Heuermann is accused of killing Megan Waterman, 22, Melissa Barthelemy, 24, and Amber Costello, 27. He is also a suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, according to police.
He pleaded not guilty to all charges last week.
The murders have remained unsolved since the skeletal remains of at least 10 people were unearthed from a sandy stretch of Ocean Parkway. Most were identified as female sex workers, while one was an Asian man. Another was a two-year-old girl.
The unsolved murders eventually spawned a bestselling book and a 2020 Netflix film.
YUKI IWAMURA/AFP/Getty Images
The crime scene at Heuermann’s home has drawn curiosity and concern from locals, one of whom told CBS News the entire situation was “sickening.”
“I am having a lot of anxiety about it that it’s so close to home,” another local told the outlet.
Heuermann’s wife, who filed for divorce Wednesday, was reportedly barred from entering as evidence continued to be hauled from the home on Thursday. Authorities previously stated Heuermann’s wife and two children weren’t in town at the time of the killings.
The electronics inside the home were seized by police. Authorities say Heuermann viewed images of the victims and their families on the internet.
Police say Heuermann became a suspect based on DNA, cell tower records and witness descriptions.
He is currently being held on suicide watch at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility, according to ABC 7. Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon told the outlet Friday about visiting Heuermann.
“I have spoken to him once,” Toulon told the outlet. “He’s very calm, all three times, he’s been laying down on his bunk, very nondescript showing no emotion.”
Heuermann is scheduled for another court appearance in August.