Authorities Say Rex Heuermann’s Killing Spree Began in ’90s

Prosecutors have charged Gilgo Beach murders suspect Rex Heuermann in the deaths of two additional women whose remains had been discovered on Long Island, suggesting that his alleged crimes began as early as the 1990s.

On Thursday morning, Heuermann was charged in the 2003 death of Jessica Taylor and the 1993 killing of Sandra Costilla. Taylor’s dismembered remains were discovered in Manorville and, years later, along Ocean Parkway in 2011. Costilla, 28, who was found dead in 1993 in North Sea, was previously connected to another accused killer.

The announcement comes after a recent uptick in activity in the Gilgo Beach inquiry. In April, investigators were seen searching a wooded area just off the Long Island Expressway in Manorville. ABC7 reported that two K9s from the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit took part in the search. The search also expanded to the area of North Sea in Southampton. Then, in May, authorities combed Heuermann’s Massapequa Park home for days, removing boxes of evidence from the premises.

The Associated Press reports that, during their search, investigators discovered what they described in court papers as a “planning document” Heuermann used to formulate his crimes. The disturbing document reportedly included notes on how to clean bodies, potential dump sites, and how to evade capture, according to the New York Post.

In July 2023, Heuermann, an architect who worked in Manhattan, was arrested and charged in connection with the deaths of three women: Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Amber Lynn Costello, 27 and Megan Waterman, 22. In January, Heuermann was named in the death of a fourth woman: 25-year-old Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who originally went missing in 2007. He was charged with second-degree murder. The four women, who were working as escorts at the time of their deaths, were frequently referred to as the “Gilgo Four.”