2023-07-17 08:41:00
(CNN) — A senior investigator with the Gilgo Beach Serial Murders Task Force described the suspect, Rex Heuermann, as a “demon” and said authorities are still working full-time on the case that has terrorized the Long Island community. Island for over a decade.
“The acts that (the suspect) committed were the worst I’ve ever seen,” Suffolk County Deputy Police Commissioner Anthony Carter told CNN.
“He’s a demon, and it’s really hard to get into the mind of someone who is capable of committing the crimes that he committed,” Carter said. “This person pretended to do what he did to these victims. And that’s why I say that he is one of the worst, if not the worst.
Rex Heuermann, 59, was arrested in New York City on Thursday and charged with murder in connection with the killing of three of the four women who became known as the “Gilgo Four,” CNN previously reported.
Unsolved murders confounded authorities on the south shore of Long Island following the 2010 disappearance of a woman led investigators to find at least 10 sets of human remains in addition to hers and began a search for a possible serial killer.
The arrest of the New York architect came more than a year following the task force explored his possible connection to the cold case named following the beach where the remains were discovered.
Heuermann pleaded not guilty and was taken into custody last Friday. He is the “prime suspect” in a fourth murder, prosecutors said.
Asked if there might be more victims, Carter said, “I think in the next few days, as we continue to gather evidence, anything is possible.”
Rex Heuermann (From RH Consultants & Associates)
“There are still things we have to do. There are still human remains that need to be further investigated at Gilgo,” she said. “I can’t begin to imagine the pain these families have had to endure over the past decade and to know that this demon was capable of committing such an evil act on these families is just, you know, beyond comprehension.”
The DNA sample found on a pizza in the trash
The multi-jurisdictional task force was formed in early 2022, three days following Carter took office as deputy commissioner. It includes investigators from the Suffolk County Police, New York State Police, Sheriff’s Department, District Attorney’s Office, FBI and others.
“The detectives on this case … never gave up,” Carter said. “They have been working on this case for over a decade and they never give up.”
The case was opened in part thanks to cell phone data, credit card bills and DNA evidence, authorities said. In January 2023, researchers obtained a sample of Heuermann’s DNA from the leftover crust of a pizza box he threw away.
Rex Heuermann in a 2022 interview with the Bonjour Realty YouTube channel. (Credit: Bonjour Realty)
“There was a lot of persistence and a lot of detailed planning going into all of that,” Carter said of the task force’s attempts to obtain a viable test sample of his suspect’s DNA. “Between our undercovers and really the full power of the task force, eventually we were able to get that abandoned sample.”
Carter said he was exercising Thursday when he received the call from Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison that the team was on its way to apprehend his suspect in Manhattan.
“When that arrest finally came, that was the first thing that came to my mind: we got him,” Carter said.
He said the task force feared for public safety and the possibility that his suspect may have set his sights on another potential victim.
Suffolk County Deputy Police Commissioner Anthony Carter speaks with CNN’s Polo Sandoval. (Credit: CNN)
“There was always a concern and that was the reason the arrest was made that Thursday night,” Carter said, noting that it was a “very dangerous and delicate balance that we had to navigate.”
Carter said investigators have continued to investigate the whereregardings and conduct of the suspect since the woman’s remains were discovered in December 2010 until last Thursday.
Investigators are also continuing to review details coming in on the tip lines and are arranging for witness interviews, he said.
Heuermann’s wife and two children are cooperating with the investigation, Carter said.
“These victims were mothers, daughters and people from the community that nobody deserves what happened to them. Nobody and, you know, bring their families and bring justice to the victims themselves. It’s been a long time, but I’m really glad we’re where we are today,” Carter said.
— CNN’s Nicole Grether, Beth English and Emma Tucker contributed to this story.
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