A New York lawyer says he has new evidence in the Gilgo Beach serial killers.
John Ray represents the family of Shannan Gilbert, who went missing after calling 911 in 2010.
Suffolk County police ultimately ruled her death an accident, but a search following her call for help uncovered the remains of 10 more people, including five alleged victims of suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heurman, 59.
Long Island serial killer suspect’s notes outline detailed murder plans: court documents
Alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heurman appears in Suffolk County, New York, Judge Tim Mazzei’s courtroom on Tuesday, February 6, 2024. Heurman is accused of murdering six women. (James Carbone/Newsday via Pool)
Ray disputes the police findings and says Gilbert’s death was not an accident and that Heuerman did not act alone.
Ray represents several women who say they survived encounters with Heuermann.
Attorney John Ray speaks at a press conference following the arrest of Rex Heurman as a suspect in the Gilgo Beach serial killings on July 14, 2023, in Massapequa Park, Long Island, New York. (Kyle Mazza/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney has repeatedly said prosecutors do not believe Heurman’s family was involved in the alleged crimes and that the family was out of town at the time of the murders.
Suspected serial killer Rex Heuerman’s home searched again
The “Gilgo Four,” clockwise from top left, are Maureen Brainerd Barnes, Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello. In the background, a wooden cross can be seen in the marsh next to Gilgo Beach, New York. Their bodies were found in brush just a few metres from Ocean Parkway. (Suffolk County Police Department/Mega via Fox News Digital)
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Attorney Bob Macedonio, who represents Heurman’s estranged wife, Asa Ellerup, said it was “reckless” to suggest his client or his adult children were involved in the murder.
Rex Heurman’s estranged wife, Asa Elelap, center, and daughter Victoria Heurman, left, leave the Suffolk County Courthouse in Riverhead, New York, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024. Elelap is the estranged wife of serial killer Rex Heurman. (Robert Miller, Fox News Digital)
Macedonio made the statement on Ellerup’s behalf last week after prosecutors filed two more murder charges against her husband. Ellerup is now accused of killing six women.
An undated photo of Sandra Costilla. Prosecutors announced Thursday, June 6, 2024, that Rex Heurman has been charged with the murder of Costilla, whose body was discovered in November 1993.
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“If Mr. Heuermann committed these murders, he was living a double life of which Ms. Erelap was unaware,” he said. “After living with Mr. Heuermann for 27 years, Ms. Erelap continues to believe that her estranged husband was incapable of committing these heinous acts.”
Heuerman has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to appear in court again on July 14.
Jessica Taylor’s body was discovered in Manorville, New York on July 26, 2003, and on March 29, 2011, along Ocean Parkway. (Suffolk County Police Department)
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Heurman was indicted last week on two new murder charges in the July 2003 killing of Jessica Taylor and the November 1993 killing of Sandra Costilla.
Prosecutors say the two were tortured and brutally treated – Costilla was found dead with 25 stab wounds, while Taylor was dismembered and his body parts dumped in two separate locations.
Police arrested Heurman in July 2023 on suspicion of murdering Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Megan Waterman, 22, and Amber Costello, 27, in front of his Manhattan office in 2010. Prosecutors later added a murder charge for Maureen Brainard Barnes, 25, whose body was found in nearby Gilgo Beach.
