Confessed Killer /// L.I.S.K /// 924 | Forensic Files

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[music] >> Welcome to True Crime Garage. Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, thanks
for [music] listening. I'm your host Nick, and with me as always is a man who was drafted Mr. Irrelevant. Here is the
captain. >> And I'm still irrelevant. It's good to be seen and good to see you. Thanks
[music] for listening. Thanks for telling a friend. This week we are excited to be drinking
Hazy and Blazed by the Fire Maker Brewing Company. I got to experience something that I am lucky enough to
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7.2% [music] ABV five out of five bottle caps. And here are some of my favorite garage friends. First up, a cheers to
Brandy Knoll from Buckingham, Virginia. And a big we like to give goes out to Christie [music] Chess from Fresno,
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Chelsea White in [music] New York City. And last, but certainly not least, I would like to give a big Ron Swanson,
please and thank you to Holly in Corvallis, [music] Oregon. Everyone we just mentioned went to
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we thank you. Yeah, b w e r u n beer run. Check out [music] the new merch in the merch store at truecrimegarage.com,
and Colonel, that's [music] enough of the business. >> All right, everybody gather around, grab
a chair, grab a beer. Let's talk some true crime. A chilling turn in court today involving
serial killer Rex Heuermann, the husband and father who worked in New York City,
now [music] pleading guilty, admitting he killed eight women. The moment he spoke in court today, and you will hear
from the woman who was married to him for 27 years. Here's our chief investigative correspondent Aaron
Katersky. Coming out, Judge. Tonight, with the families of his victims in the courtroom
and his ex-wife of 27 years and daughter watching, Rex Heuermann leaving no doubt
he is the Gilgo Beach serial killer who terrorized neighborhoods outside New York City. Do you feel it's in your best
interest to plead guilty rather than go to trial? Yes, your honor. The suburban dad who worked as an architect on 5th
Avenue in Manhattan >> I'm an architectural consultant. admitting he lived a double life,
pleading guilty to murdering eight women and burying their bodies on Long Island.
Some found dismembered and wrapped in burlap near the beach. Heuermann strangled his victims, who he hired as
escorts in a nearly two-decade killing spree starting in 1993. This defendant walked among us, play-acting as a normal
suburban dad, when in reality, all along he was obsessively targeting innocent women for death. Heuermann was finally
tracked down and arrested in 2023 after his DNA was retrieved from pizza crust in the trash outside his office and
linked to hair samples found on the victims. Detectives scouring Heuermann's home and
a storage unit, amassing a mountain of evidence, [music] including a chilling collection of news articles about the
murders and what prosecutors called his blueprint with locations [music] of dump
sites and reminders to dispose of tools and devices and burn gloves. Today, outside court, the woman married
to him for nearly three decades, she says she never wanted to believe it was true. My thoughts and prayers are with
the victims and their families. Their loss [music] is immeasurable. And the focus should be on them at this
time and moment. The families of victims never gave up hope the killer would be caught. Missy Cann, whose sister Maureen
was killed in 2007, with this message to her today. I would never stop searching
for justice for you. Through every year, every setback, every >> [snorts] >> Okay. Every unanswered question,
I carried you with me, and I kept that promise. And today, it has been done. I was in the hushed courtroom today,
David, as Heuermann repeatedly [music] uttered guilty with what appeared to be a slight smirk on his face. The DA told
me here a moment ago, David, he thinks Heuermann [music] just got tired of fighting. He's never going to leave
prison, and he must cooperate with the [music] FBI to give investigators a window into the mind of a monstrous
serial killer. David. >> Yeah, what a [music] horrific case that affected this community for decades.
Aaron, thank you. >> [music] >> The updates started in December of last year when Andrew Dykes, a 20-year-old
Army veteran, was arrested at his home in Florida on December 3rd, linking him to the killing of the victim that
everyone has been calling Peaches. In a stunning turn of events for a case marked by decades of mystery, Andrew
Dykes was arrested in Florida, charged with the 1997 murder of Tanya Jackson, also known as
Peaches. This development set shock waves through the ongoing investigation into the Long Island serial killer, a
case that has been in the public eye for 28 years since Jackson's torso was first
discovered in Hempstead Lake State Park. For years, the case was largely centered
on Rex Heuermann, who was taken into custody two and a half years ago as the main suspect for the murders of at least
six of the possibly 10 victims whose remains were found along Ocean Parkway between late 2010 and early
2011. We say possible 10 victims. There were absolutely 10 victims, but possibly 10 victims all connected to
the Long Island serial killer case. The connection between Tanya Jackson and the Gilgo Beach case was strong, yet
Rex Heuermann was never charged with Jackson's murder. In 2011, the body of her 2-year-old daughter,
Tatiana, was found near the other Gilgo Beach victims. Four years later, in 2015,
DNA evidence confirmed that limbs found along Ocean Parkway belonged to the toddler's mother,
linking them back to the 1997 torso, which was found in a Rubbermaid container. Due to a distinctive tattoo,
the victim was dubbed Peaches. She was unknown, her true identity unknown, for many years. The common assumption was
that Rex Heuermann was responsible for all 10 victims, a theory bolstered by a planning document allegedly found on his
computer. The arrest of Dykes shattered this assumption. On December 3rd, Andrew Dykes was
apprehended in Hillsborough County, Florida on a fugitive warrant from Nassau County, New York for murder in
the second degree. At his extradition hearing, he voluntarily agreed to return to New York State, and quote, "I'd like
to go into New York and defend myself." End quote. The news was described as a bombshell that turned everything upside
down, leaving experts and reporters stunned and a little bit confused, too, as it revived the long-debated theory of
multiple killers in the 10-victim case. And also at this time, Rex Heuermann is saying that he's innocent of all crimes.
That's exactly right. Andrew Dykes, identified by police as the father of Tanya Jackson's daughter,
Tatiana, present a complex profile. He's a 21-year veteran of the US Army. So, he was
working with a career in the US Army from 1980 to 2021, and he achieved the rank of medical
sergeant, this giving him knowledge of human anatomy. He and Jackson served together at the same military base. This
is Fort Sam Houston in Texas, where they had an affair. Jackson entered the military in 1993 and
left 2 years later and gave birth to Tatiana 1 month after her discharge. Now, at that time Captain Dykes, Andrew
Dykes was married to a woman named Joyce, with whom he had two sons and was living on base at Fort Hamilton
in Brooklyn working as a recruiter. So, they have this affair in Texas and now once she leaves the military, he's up at
Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn putting him near her. We know that she made her way to New York at some point. Investigators
initially floated a motive out there for the murder connecting him to it obviously saying that Andrew Dykes
allegedly killed Tanya Jackson to prevent her from revealing their affair and the child, which would
have thrown his life and military career into chaos. Now, there's a bit of a problem here with the theory and there's
a little bit of an issue too with the evidence because this narrative is strongly contested by Dykes' son, Andre,
who goes by Dre. Right. So, according to Dre, he says, "Our family, including his
mother Joyce, were fully aware of both Tanya and Tatiana." Right, but they don't have to
prove motive, but So, he says that he he remembers times where his mother would point out Tatiana saying, "That's your
sister." Right. Furthermore, he claims that the US Army was also aware of Tatiana and
she was listed on insurance and medical paperwork. The counter narrative, this counter
narrative significantly weakens the primary motive proposed by law enforcement. But like
you said, Captain, they don't have to prove motive. Right. They don't have to prove motive, but they stated a motive.
And so, if you can say, "Well, their motive is completely wrong, what else are they wrong about?"
>> Well, and the thing is I'm with you. You don't have to prove motive, but at a
jury trial, if your evidence is flimsy, you better have a good motive that you can sell to that jury that they're
willing to buy. The path to identifying Andrew Dykes as a suspect is also a point of discussion. While his son
believes authorities used his DNA that he submitted to ancestry.com to you know, he just wanted to learn about
their background, there's a source close to the FBI, the FBI says otherwise. They say that genealogical research in
Alabama was what first identified Tanya Jackson and it was Tatiana's birth certificate
that ultimately led them to Andrew Dykes. Now, regardless, what is suspicious and police are saying this
and I agree, Andrew Dykes never reported Tanya missing. Right. And we know that she Kind of a
red flag. decades ago. The strength of the evidence against Andrew Dykes is we have to have some skepticism here,
right? We have to have some skepticism. We know that there they have physical evidence linking him to the murder.
That's what they're saying the arrest was based off of. However, they're not they've not been
open about what that physical evidence was. It sounds like it's something DNA related, but here becomes the problem
for the case. Yeah. And I couldn't find a court date, which is which is good for the
prosecution if he is the guy. Remember, Peaches was found in a Rubbermaid container. This is Look, for the killer,
that that's bad business because it preserves This would preserve physical evidence.
But what exactly was the evidence, right? Because there could be innocent explanations for his DNA being at the
scene where her torso was found. Right. Given their relationship, if the relationship is as
the son says, that he didn't need to cover it up, it's reasonable to think that there may have been ongoing
interaction between the two. So, could this be some just a simple DNA transfer from something like a blanket, clothing,
or other items? Maybe that container was his at one time and he stored things in
there. So, I'm not pointing and saying that the guy's innocent. I'm just saying this one,
while we have an arrest and thank goodness that we do. I mean, it took so long to identify
this woman who served our country and her daughter and so long to wait for an arrest. And if you review stuff that
I've put out there in the past regarding the Peaches murder, I absolutely did think that it was
Rex Heuermann. Well, because we have so many victims in the same relative dump site. Because of this
tub, right? That's different than the other victims. >> The tub is, but remember when we did our
blueprint for murder episode and when we and we covered Peaches as a completely separate episode as well. We've We've
talked Long Island serial killer since 2016. In multiple episodes, we've had guests
on for the shows. We've We talked about the time when the police chief was was coming under fire, rightfully so, cuz he
was up to no good at the time. I mean, this case is complex and it's it's been long. It's lengthy and it's it's taken
years and decades to get to where it sits today. Normally, in a case, Captain, you've heard me say it so many
times you're probably sick in the head about it. I I said it >> a lot of things? I've said it dozens of
times that dismemberment >> Right. would be typically would be an attempt to hide
one's identity, hide the identity of the victim. Absolutely. And we know in the Peaches case,
identifying marks like distinctive tattoos, like a Peaches tattoo and jewelry that
was left behind on on the remains, those are identifiers. This is you're right. It it is in it contrast with some
of the other victims that are linked to Rex Heuermann, but but here's the problem. Dismemberment would point that
the to an offender who had a close relationship that would be easily connected to your victim, so you want
your victim to remain unidentified. That makes sense if you look at Andrew Dykes. However, the flip of that coin is
Rex Heuermann typically dismembered his victims. Yeah. The Peaches tattoo also contrasts with the idea that it's
Andrew Dykes because wouldn't he want to remove that? If he took the time and effort to
dismember the body, he would have spent some time to remove the Peaches tattoo, one would think. Yes, and I think you
can go further with that because let's just say hypothetically it was Rex, Rex might not know about the tattoo,
maybe would discover it during the dismemberment, so you'd think he would get rid of that item, but who would
definitely know about that? Her ex. Well, but then what we see in the blueprint of murder is he talks about
tattoos, Rex Heuermann does. Exactly. And what we talked about it in blueprint for murder, we also talked about it on
the Peaches episode where maybe this was part of the learning process for Heuermann,
right? That he >> Right. he dumps the body, the remains are discovered, and then she's identified as
Peaches for so long because of the tattoo. And it was The tattoo, remember we had said it it was in the newspaper.
They put a picture of it in the newspaper and circulated it asking for people to
come forward to identify the woman. And he read this. The theory I had at the time
was he read this and said, "Oh, going forward, this is a mistake that I can't make again." And we do know that in
other cases, he did make deliberate efforts to obliterate tattoos. >> Yes. Yeah. So, here we have this arrest that
we're thankful to have, but we have a combination of questionable motive and potentially circumstantial forensic
evidence. So, we have to kind of wait and see where this goes because this arrest with this evidence that's been
presented to the public anyway, we don't know what else they they may have, is significantly weaker than the extensive
evidence that we have, which includes things like burner phones, credit card receipts, and DNA that was compiled
against a one Rex Heuermann in these other murders. The Ogre from Long Island. This arrest, however, again,
circling back before we move on, does resurrect the multiple killers theory. Something
that's it's an idea that's not new. It's been publicly debated for a long time. Since the beginning. That debate was
hushed and quieted to a great degree once they arrested the ogre from Long Island.
Real piece of [ __ ] And as said, we strongly suspected Rex Heuermann in this case, this specific case, the murder of
Tanya and her daughter Tatiana. So that was December and we will wait for updates on that case, on the case
against Andrew Dykes. Now Captain Yes, sir. we go to something with much more certainty. A conclusion finally came
this month in the Gilgo Beach Long Island serial killer case. I actually thought this was going to happen, but I
didn't think it was going to take this long. It'd be interesting to know what happened behind closed doors and why it
took so long. Yeah, it will be and I I think there's a chance we might learn some more about this. Oh, I think we're
going to learn a ton more. It was a packed house at the Arthur Cromarty Criminal Court Complex in Long Island,
New York, but once the proceedings got started, the courtroom went silent, my friends. The folks there sitting on pins
and needles waiting to see the monster, some for the first time and some hoping maybe
for the last time. The ogre, as we have been calling him since the early days after his arrest, Rex Heuermann, now 62
years old, was dressed in a dark suit with a white shirt and a blue tie. He was all dressed up with nowhere to go
there, Captain. Yeah, but you're not going to state the obvious. Mhm. Did you see his haircut? Change it.
Doesn't help you. You Doesn't help you. You dumb [clears throat] fat >> His hair's getting a little longer. It's
but the haircut's getting worse. No good barbers in prison. [laughter and clears throat]
That's right. He, Rex Heuermann, the abomination, the abomination stood before State Supreme Court Justice
Timothy Maisie and did what he had refused to do since his arrest. He admitted to killing eight.
Yes. >> Remember he was only charged with seven. He admitted to killing eight young
women. For years the case had loomed over Long Island and the greater New York area
like an open wound. Names, missing posters, partial remains, unanswered questions.
And as you said earlier, Captain, Rex Heuermann had insisted that he was not responsible. And the
reason why I thought this would happen sooner is I think he's very similar to BTK and BTK has
made statements about the ogre saying that he's a basically a copy of him. Mhm. And so I thought there's probably a
a sense of cubism going on with Rex Heuermann. So I I thought he would confess earlier
because look, he's a he's a giant pile of [ __ ] but with the cubism I think he has shown that he, you know,
cares about his wife and cares about his children. So I thought maybe he would confess earlier to spare them some pain,
but he he didn't. They have got, in my opinion, a very raw deal. The judge when he pled guilty was asking him a
series of questions of, you know, does he understand what he's admitting to? Does he understand
that it's a guilty plea is the same as having a trial and and getting convicted that in that manner.
Right. >> And to which all of these questions Rex followed up with a sequence of yes
answers and yes, your honor, I understand. His admission carried a clear consequence, life in prison
without the possibility of parole is what we are thinking is going to happen here. There's no death penalty in
this case. The court set sentencing for June 17th. Seems like a bit of a formality, but necessary
because we'll hear victim impact statements, I hope. Victims' families will have the opportunity to speak and
address the court and address the state of New York and address the monster, the
abomination himself. Hopefully Rex will have something to say as well. >> Well, isn't he agreeing also to talk
with FBI as far as like the mind hunter experience? Yes, and how forthcoming he will be will is yet to be seen. I think
you and I share the same suspicion that we think that once he gets to talking, it will be hard to shut him up. Well, we
have evidence that he already admitted to a crime that he wasn't being charged with. So my question to you is do you
believe that there's other victims? Because yes, we have these victims in Long Island, but he spent time in other
locations. Is it possible that there's victims there? Well, there could be. The what will be the difference is if those
locations are a state that has the death penalty, I don't think he's going to admit to anything like that.
>> Yes, but if he's working with FBI he might be able to make a deal before he starts disclosing this information.
True. I still don't think that he'll admit to it. A bird in the hand is you right? I
mean, why why would you do that? I hate that saying cuz I don't I don't know what it means. It It means if your
situation's >> in the bush. If your situation's not terrible, um don't don't try to don't try to push
your luck. Yeah, but here's the thing. The The two birds in the bush can't [ __ ]
in my hand. So I don't want a bird in the hand. >> Or gas you to death or inject you to
your to your death. I don't think he'll admit to anything outside of the state of New
York. And I also don't If he's responsible for killing the Asian Doe, I don't think he'll admit
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air. Thanks for telling your mother. Thanks for telling your brother. What's the beer called again? It is
Hazed and Blazed. Hell yeah. Hazed and Blazed. Well, I it sounded like a, you know,
this is a case that we've covered for a very, very long time. We've looked at it
many different ways over the years and when we first started looking at it, but nobody had any idea about Rex Heuermann
or who he was, the architect of murder. It really feels like today is a bit of a
cause for celebration. It's a bittersweet moment, right? But it's it is cause for celebration and Hazed and
Blazed sound like a a great beer name to have for the celebration. Man, when I cracked this baby open, even so, I
didn't know it was going to be that I had found my new favorite beer. >> Yeah, five out of five.
>> So cheers to everybody out there. Power to the people. Now, under questioning
from Suffolk County District Attorney, Heuermann admitted the pattern and the mechanics of his crimes. He said he
strangled all eight victims. He acknowledged using burner phones to contact them.
He described how he wrapped bodies in burlap and disposed of the bodies. Yeah. >> He admitted to dismembering some of the
victims. I thought his words sounded clinical. No, and I thought his words sounded clinical. I mean, that's how
these that's how these guys are when they do finally talk. They it sounds like they're reading from a textbook.
There's very little emotion. If there's often times no emotion. Well, he was writing a textbook on murder.
>> Of course, these details landed hard in the courtroom. We did see some of the
family members were there present sitting crying, in tears because each detail look,
as much as we want to learn and hear some of the details, we got to these are these were done to a person with a
family, with a history. A person with a life that ended violently. And then, of course, we know that he these victims,
he discarded them like garbage. Well, these are tougher cases because if you have a crime of passion or
something somebody pulls out a gun, the killing's instant or almost instant. And
then even if somebody again a crime of passion somebody grabs a knife and you can sit there and and [clears throat]
and if you're reading the autopsy you can go well this individual stabbed 40 sometimes. And that's horrific but
all in a lot of those cases and I'm I'm not trying to be funny about this but in a lot of those cases the
the person passed away so the suffering's less. Part of these serial killers the these are torturous deaths.
The pain, the suffering, the watching the victim be scared watching the victim be tortured. That's
part of their sick fantasies. Well, they're sadist. Not all of them but most of them are sadist. Right. And that's
absolutely true and I don't know to what degree I know that's a weird statement but
some of these guys that that strangle and suffocate their victims they will resuscitate them and do it
again. A true crime docu-drama that people don't talk a lot about woman of the hour it shows the dating game serial
killer and they show in in the film that same scenario where he would choke his victim and then resuscitate her
essentially and then do it again and often times they would do this over and over as many times as
they could. After the hearing Rex Heuermann's attorney Michael Brown told reporters that the decision
to plead guilty was Rex Heuermann's alone. Brown said there came a point when Heuermann told the defense team I
want to plead guilty. Brown added that one of Heuermann's concerns was sparing both emphasis on the word both here for
a second. Sparing both his own family and the victims families from the ordeal of a
trial. I say [ __ ] Uh this guy's a monster. He only cares about himself. He only wanted to spare his family. He's
doesn't care about the victims families. If he cared about them at all he would never have murdered
their loved one to begin with. When asked if Heuermann felt remorse, his attorney Brown did not offer a
direct confirmation. He said only that he would hope so and he expected Rex Heuermann would have something to say at
sentencing. Now as you were talking about here Captain part of this plea deal as part of the plea deal Rex
Heuermann also agreed to cooperate fully with the FBI's behavioral analysis unit
a commitment that suggested investigators believe the story might still have edges to trace,
patterns to map or maybe even questions to close out. Rex's family was in the courtroom. His ex-wife Asa and their
daughter Victoria were present. After the plea Asa issued a brief statement centered on
the victims and their families. Where he has no remorse his wife certainly seems
to his ex-wife. She said that her thoughts and prayers were with the victims and their families and called
the families loss immeasurable and asked for privacy for her own family as they navigated what she described as a very
difficult time. Her attorney spoke as well with reporters speaking about a wider trauma
the murders had inflicted pain that in his words nothing said in court could lessen. He also said that Asa never
wanted to believe that the man that she had been married to for 27 years the father of her child was capable of such
horrific acts. So let's get into this uh confession or confessions a bit here because among the eight killings Rex
Heuermann admitted to was a murder that expanded really what the public understood about
the case. Rex Heuermann acknowledged killing Karen Vergata a 34-year-old mother of two and
her story stretched across decades. Her remains were initially found on Fire Island in April 1996. Additional remains
were found near Gilgo Beach in April of 2011. She was believed to have been working as
an escort in Manhattan when she disappeared on February 14th, 1996. For years investigators knew her only as
Fire Island Jane Doe. It wasn't until 2022 through genetic through genetic genealogy
that authorities could finally attach a name to the remains. After that identification her
step-sister Brenda described the long uncertainty that surrounded Vergata's disappearance. She
said you never know when it's going to be the last time you see someone. She explained that the family had wondered
what happened but added that Vergata sometimes went long periods of time without contacting the family. She says
over time what started as fear hardened into resignation. They just assumed she was dead because
no one had heard from her in 20 years. No and we see that in the Brian Shaffer case. Detectives that
thought maybe he started a new life somewhere else or maybe just hopeful of that. 20 years has
passed now you see their viewpoints on the case change and so that that'd be a devastating thing where you go well
maybe he'll turn back up or maybe somebody said something that made them want to not have contact for a while but
maybe they'll turn up. And every year that passes you lose hope. Following the court appearance
District Attorney Ray Tierney spoke publicly and he chose to name and address the families directly. He
thanked the victims relatives one by one for their help and said he was sorry an
apology delivered not as a formality in my opinion but as recognition of what years of uncertainty and incomplete
answers had cost them. Ray Tierney described how at the beginning the victims had been nothing but names on
investigative reports. Then investigators met the families met with the families. The families turned
paperwork into people. >> Well we've experienced that too. I mean we somebody suggests a case and you look
into it and you don't know what's there or maybe there's not much there on the internet.
You discuss the case with somebody close maybe a a friend and then they contact you with a a family member and then all
of a sudden the amount of details that are just not shared online and it like like you said it it turns a
case into a a person. >> Exactly and you know getting to to know the victims and in this case
it's it's more complex because some of the victims went without their their birth names
for very long and big parts of this investigation. And so learning about the victims, knowing
who the victims were, some of them mothers, some sisters, friends, all of them daughters
knowing who the victims were this is going to push the good investigators to work harder to close out this case. This
is three decades. This is a three decades case. Yeah but I think it goes even further like the
you're turning the case into people but once you turn the case into people then a lot of these detectives then it
becomes personable, right? It becomes a life mission to solve these crimes. I want to talk about the police
commissioner here for a bit Captain because I enjoyed this part because it is good to call balls and strikes,
right? Call it as you see it and stand up there and say it. Uh it needs to be done because that is
that is one of the things that these guys these serial killers hate the most. This is when
they get to and they they have to feel the shame. The shame for not just what they have done but truly it is the shame
for who they are. Expose them in front of their families. In front of the cameras expose them.
It's good to point your finger at the ogre and say there there he is the abomination. So South
uh Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina cheers to you Kevin. He spoke
to reporters with visible anger at the image of Rex Heuermann and the image that Rex Heuermann had projected
since the arrest. You know acting calm, serene, almost grandfatherly in his demeanor.
Catalina called that image a lie and an insult to law enforcement but more importantly to the families who had to
endure it at each court appearance for the last two and a half years. He said that in court Rex Heuermann was finally
exposed for what he was using words meant to strip away any remaining pretense. He called Heuermann sadistic,
soulless and murderous. Yeah I call that a Dawson's Creek douche canoe. It's it's
still a douche canoe still piece of [ __ ] but you're trying to be a more wholesome
version of that. And again, I thought eventually he would admit to the crimes, but that was based on the idea that
they're stacking piles of evidence. And at some point, he then has to wrestle in his mind and as much as I
want the FBI to study this individual and and learn as much as they can to possibly prevent or
capture other serial killers, there's a there is a a little bit of a problem I have with this because
this piece of [ __ ] wants to control the narrative. And by having this investigation or this studying of him,
he's going to try to do that. I don't know if he's going to be successful in that. I mean, this this guy should feel
the shame. I just don't know if he's capable of feeling the shame. Well, Rex Heuermann we know lived in Massapequa
Park, Long Island, maintaining what appeared from the outside to be an ordinary life. He commuted to Manhattan
and worked as an architect. But, on July 13th, 2023, he was arrested in Midtown Manhattan in connection with the deaths
of Melissa Bartholomew, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello. These three women were connected to the grim landmark that
we all know about in this investigation, the discovery of bodies along Ocean Parkway. So, it was
you know, the Gilgo the Gilgo four that started it all, kicking off this mega-sized investigation back in
December of 2010 when investigators found four bodies wrapped in burlap within a quarter mile of one another
along Ocean Parkway. Those four victims became known as the Gilgo four and their discovery is
prompted by prompted investigators to publicly acknowledge that a serial killer might be responsible. And the
search that led that discovery was initially focused on another missing young woman, Shannan Gilbert, who that
one we still have no answers in and of course as long-time listeners of this show know that her death remains
contested and cause of much debate over the years. The only thing I'm hopeful in
these conversations that the FBI will have with him is is like you said, maybe once he starts talking,
he won't stop. And then maybe other families will get answers to what happened to their loved ones. Well,
don't hold your breath. I go back to the whole statement of I Look, I don't know
what he told his attorney. I know what the attorney told the reporters that Rex Heuermann said, "I
want to plead guilty. I want to change my my plea to guilty because I want to spare my family and the victim's family
the trauma of a trial." Again, [ __ ] Remember this guy, he killed these women, dismembered them, placed their
remains alongside the road. Yeah. And then in some cases called used the victim's cell phone and I'm glad that he
did. I'm glad that he did because that's part of the thing that got him caught. Right.
>> But, he would he called the victims using the victim's cell phone called the victim's family and taunted them with
cruel explicit language that not only upset them and saddened them, but also caused them fear as well. Could this guy
come after me? Could this guy come after us? Yeah, the the call was calls were twofold, right? There
[clears throat] it was taunting, but threatening at the same time. I mean, it shows you how how giant I mean, as big
as he is, he is as equally as big of a piece of [ __ ] What I do love though is that in the end, it was a
vehicle description and pizza crust DNA, Captain, that was the big break needed to finally get an arrest. Investigators
said that DNA One by everybody knows the rules. Investigators said that DNA evidence helped steer them toward Rex
Heuermann. They cited a DNA link involving a pizza crust recovered from a Manhattan trash can near Rex Heuermann's
work office and hair evidence connected to one of the victims. Police also referenced a vehicle description
provided by someone that knew one of the victims. This was a green Chevrolet Avalanche
described during a meeting with investigators in the spring of 2022. And so, that that also was a big part of
this case. This led them to Not many people had that type of vehicle at that time
when that meeting took place. And when they started working that angle in 2022, that was something that really helped
build the breadcrumb trail to get them to Rex Heuermann. Yeah, that was a game changer. And I
think there's some positive things uh about this plea deal. One, they don't have to spend more time and
resources to convict him. And yes, they had this mountain of evidence, but how long would this
case because there was so many cases. And I know that they were trying to lump them all together,
but again, this was going to take a lot of time and effort and he continued to lie to his family, put
them through Again, I thought there was more maybe cubism here and maybe that's I think maybe a weird thing to
say that. I think some of these serial killers care more about their families than other ones and I think him delaying
admitting to these crimes and putting his family through what they went through and I guess you can make an
argument because these documentaries now pay. So, how how much did the family make off
his crimes and and and is that something that we should allow? Because they're victims as well,
but then you then there's the whole debate of how much did they know or uh or how much did they suspect. But,
Peacock put out that great series last year called House of Secrets and they just
put out a final episode April 23rd. So, if you haven't seen that or if you saw the original episodes,
they did do a a final episode and and it it's fascinating to see the to see his wife
or ex-wife at this point, but to see her explain how he confessed to the crimes and I can't imagine what she's going
through or the family's going through. Yeah. Well, yeah. And now the abomination's ex-wife is
sleeping in the ogre's kill room. Which is bizarre. Oh, is it? You don't sleep in your uh ex-spouse's
kill room, Asa? Rex Heuermann's ex-wife now ex-wife says that she now sleeps in the basement of their Massapequa Park,
Long Island home, an area she describes as the room where he killed and dismembered victims. This from what you
referenced there, Captain, the fourth episode of Peacock's documentary The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets,
she says the space has been gutted, but she still feels haunted by dreams every night and believes the trauma will
follow her for life. Asa, who finalized her divorce from Rex in March of 2025, says she visited Rex Heuermann in jail
last summer and asked [clears throat] him how many women he killed. She recalls him
confessing to eight murders, one more than the seven that he had been charged with, and telling her all but one were
killed in that basement. So, according to her, she's known that he's guilty of eight murders since last
summer. My favorite part of her talking about the confessions is how she's called him
Mr. Heuermann. She wasn't going to call him Rex anymore. And I think that was a symbolic of I don't really know who you
are. I didn't think you were capable of these crimes. And now I know that you committed these crimes. Yeah, it's crazy
to think how far back this case goes. It's For decades, the Gilgo Beach investigation was a tangle of partial
remains, silence, and families forced to live with unanswered questions. But, we can sit here today, Captain, and be
thankful that law enforcement kept working, that technology kept changing, and then names that once had been
placeholders became people again. And what we saw this month in that Riverhead courtroom,
Rex Heuermann confirmed what investigators had built the case to prove, that he had targeted these women,
killed them, and tried to make them disappear. But, he did not succeed. The victims did not remain only names
on blotter. Their families brought them back into full view, into memory, into testimony, into the narrative of what
happened, and at last into a measure of legal finality that had been withheld for far too long.
>> [music] >> Want to thank everybody for joining us here in the garage each and every week.
Thanks for telling your mother. Thanks for telling your brother. Thanks for telling your sister. Thanks for telling
your nieces and nephews. Colonel, do we have any recommended reading for the beautiful listeners? Let's do some
recommended listening here today, Captain. We're going to recommend True Crime Garage, of course, for your ear
balls. >> No duh. Go back if you if you want to continue into this case, we we have no
shortage of episodes. We've covered it, as the Captain has said, for 10 years, but the the two the ones that I would
really point to that go well with today's episode are one from December 31st, 2024,
and then the following day, so New Year's Eve and then New Year's Day, we had a two-parter, Blueprint for Murder.
Those are episodes 810 and 811. And then from October of 2025, our Peaches episode, that is episode 877 on your
True Crime Garage Radio dial. And until next week, be good, [music] be kind, and
don't litter. >> [music] [music] [music] [music]

Confessed Killer /// L.I.S.K /// 924

www.TrueCrimeGarage.com (http://www.truecrimegarage.com/)

Following a multi-agency task force investigation, Rex Heuermann was arrested on July 13, 2023 in connection with a murder in a string a of murders often refer to as “The Gilgo Four.” Eventually, he would be charged by the state of New York for killing seven women. For over two years he denied any involvement in the murders, claiming that he was innocent of the charges. This month in front of a judge and a packed courthouse the 62-year-old Long Island architect confessed to killing eight women. One more than what he was charged.

This episode is part of our ongoing Long Island Serial Killer (L.I.S.K.) coverage. We recommend checking out our episodes - Blue Print for Murder #810 and #811 from January 2025 and Peaches #877 from October 2025.

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Brief Summary

Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to eight murders, while Andrew Dykes is arrested for a 1997 killing, complicating the Long Island serial killer case.

Key points

Betrayed by Bill. A listener shares a story of betrayal by an insurance bill, leading to a switch to Geico.
Rex Heuermann Pleads Guilty. The Gilgo Beach serial killer admits to murdering eight women in a shocking courtroom moment.
Rex Heuermann's Guilty Plea. Rex Heuermann pled guilty, facing life in prison without parole. His admission carries heavy consequences.
Victims' Families Speak. Families of the victims express their pain and the long journey to justice.
The Impact of Time. The case spans three decades, highlighting the long struggle for answers.
The Ex-Wife's Confession. Rex Heuermann's ex-wife reveals chilling details about his confessions and their impact.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I would never stop searching for justice for you.

Victim's sister's message

5:18WatchApr 28, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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