Authorities Believe Gilgo Beach Murder Suspect Kept Trophies Of His Victims!

[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

More twisted information about the Gilgo Beach murder suspect has come out.

As we’ve previously reported, the bodies of four missing women were discovered along a half-mile stretch at Gilgo Beach on Long Island, New York, back in 2010. The case perplexed investigators for more than a decade. But everything changed on July 13 when law enforcement finally caught the alleged Long Island serial killer. Rex Heuermann was arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder and three counts of second-degree murder last week for the deaths of Amber Costello, Melissa Barthelemy, and Megan Waterman. It’s unknown if the 59-year-old will face more charges in the future, but he is considered a prime suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes.

Days after the arrest, the district attorney on the case shared even more insight into the investigation. And the details are disturbing, you guys! According to Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney, authorities believe Heuermann kept trophies of his victims somewhere in his home that they hope to find for the trial. He told People:

“Whatever it is, whether it’s something that he kept intentionally or something that he didn’t even realize he kept, we hope that somewhere in that house it’s located and we could find it.”

Tierney added that police are “in the process of gathering a massive amount of digital evidence and trace evidence,” adding:

“We’re undergoing that process so we just have to wait for that to play out. Then at the end, we’ll see what we get.”

So far, what they’ve uncovered has been jaw-dropping! Tierney explained to the outlet that the suspect allegedly used four separate burner phones to reach out to the women and lure them to Massapequa:

“He would buy the burner phone, call them, and lure them out to Massapequa. Then he would murder them, and then he would discontinue the use of the burner phone. He did that four times.”

The DA claimed Heuermann was “disciplined” when he used the phones. But not disciplined enough! Tierney explained his cell sites inevitably “betrayed” his locations in Massapequa Park and Midtown Manhattan. But what really got Heuermann on investigators’ radar? Tierney said it was “a comprehensive review of every item of evidence” in March 2022 that led cops to find a Chevy Avalanche owned by the alleged serial killer at the time of the murders. A witness had seen the same pickup truck driven by the killer of Costello. Tierney explained to People that the task force detective eventually linked Heuermann and the Chevy Avalanche through motor vehicle records:

“They found his car, and they found his address, and then they found out his physical description, and then they found out where he worked. And every time they dug further, you were getting more associations, which obviously got people excited.”

From there, investigators needed “to get a DNA sample” from Heuermann and compare it to the male hair found on the burlap wrapped around Waterman’s body – which they got through a discarded pizza crust. They also discovered hairs at the scene that matched Heuermann’s wife. However, she had been out of town when the four women disappeared, leading detectives to conclude that she wasn’t involved in the killings.

Additional evidence linking Heuermann to the crimes was his internet habits. Authorities eventually found all of his burner phones, fake email accounts, and fake identities he used. And what they found was on these devices and accounts were beyond messed up. Tierney said:

“We saw all this, really sort of concerning searches that he was undergoing. In a 14-month period, over 200 times, he’s searching for information about the Gilgo investigation. He’s trying to figure out what we’re up to.”

Some of those searches included: “Why could law enforcement not trace the calls made by the long island serial killer” and “Why hasn’t the long island serial killer been caught.” As we’ve reported before, Heuermann allegedly looked into “sadistic, torture-related pornography” and child pornography. Tierney has now stated that investigators specifically uncovered searches for raping and torturing women, including “girl begging for rape porn” and “torture redhead porn.” He further claimed Heuermann also looked into his victims and their families:

“He was obsessively looking at the victims, but he’s also looking at the victim’s siblings.”

Awful.

Heuermann allegedly had an obsession with other serial killers, looking online for “11 currently active serial killers,” and “8 Terrifying Active Serial Killers (We Can’t Find).” WTF?! As for his fake accounts and other burner phones? He allegedly used them to contact sex workers. Tierney pointed out to People:

“This was not good.”

Once they realized this, he said law enforcement knew they needed to arrest Heuermann as soon as possible. They decided to bust him near his office building in Manhattan, instead of at his home since he has 92 gun permits. Jeez. As for how Heuermann reacted to the sudden arrest? Tierney said:

“I’d say he was pretty surprised. I think he lived this double life, and he used the anonymity of phones and computers to shield himself from the rest of society. Unfortunately for him — and fortunately for the rest of us — he wasn’t successful.”

Since his arrest, the victims’ families also must be breathing a sigh of relief that Heuermann is off the streets and behind bars. But he has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. Earlier this week, ABC7 reported investigators served several search warrants on Heuermann’s residence and two nearby storage units. They also have asked a law enforcement agency in South Carolina to grab the vehicle linked to the case. Hopefully, the police will gather more evidence to put this case to bed for good.