Was Long Island Suspect Involved in West AC Serial Murders?
Is there any connection between the suspect in the Long Island murders and the deaths of four women found in West Atlantic City in 2006?
New York prosecutors announced Friday they have a suspect -- New York City architect Rex Heuermann -- in connection to the string of murders that took place in Gilgo Beach, New York, known as the “Long Island Serial Killer” case.
The announcement is a major break in the cold case of the Gilgo Beach killings of at least three of the 10 people whose remains were found on Long Island in December 2010.
Prosecutors say Heuerrmann was connected to the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello through a combination of cell phone records, DNA evidence on a pizza box, and his physical description.
Although he hasn't been charged, he is also considered the suspect in the death of another woman, Maureen Brainard-Barnes.
The deaths long stumped investigators, and the mystery led to a 2020 Netflix film, “Lost Girls.”
Among the 10 people killed in the Gilgo murders investigation -- eight women, a man, and a toddler -- was 24-year-old sex worker Valerie Mack, who grew up in Egg Harbor and was last seen in Port Republic, Atlantic County before her disappearance in 2000.
An arrest, in this case, brings immediate questions about any possible ties to a South Jersey cold case, the murders of four women whose bodies were found in a drainage ditch behind a motel on the Black Horse Pike on Nov. 20, 2006,
The four victims, who had worked as prostitutes in the area, were found by two women out for a walk behind the Golden Key Motel in West Atlantic City.
Much like the Gilgo Beach killings, the murders of Kim Raffo, Molly Dilts, Barbara Breidor, and Tracy Roberts have attracted substantial media attention over the years, but remain unsolved today.
The killings are also similar because most of the victims were young women who had been sex workers.
There hasn't been any statement by South Jersey authorities about a possible connection between the two cases, but, you would think there would certainly be an investigation into any chance that Rex Heuermann was in South Jersey at the time before the women's bodies were found in West Atlantic City.
In the years since the discovery of the women's bodies in West Atlantic City, authorities in the Atlantic County prosecutor's office have said they have never stopped investigating the murders.
Heuerrmann's possible involvement seems like it should be investigated thoroughly as a potential missing piece of the puzzle that has confounded authorities for almost 17 years.
Here is a gallery of the women found behind the Golden Key Motel in West Atlantic City in 2006 and photos and image grabs from Chasing News and the Associated Press taken during the investigation into these murders.
