A first-generation Chevy Avalanche described by a Gilgo Beach witness in 2010 appeared on Google Street View outside the home of prime suspect Rex Heuerman — as sleuthing cops repeatedly failed to act on clues pointed at him.
Police are crediting the mention of a Chevy Avalanche belonging to suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuerman as the ‘turning point’ in leading to his arrest, although many are wondering why it took so long to find it.
In March 2022, detectives linked Heuerman to the car after testimony from Amber Costello’s pimp, a victim who disappeared in 2010.
Pimp described the owner of the Chevrolet Avalanche as an ‘ogre’ and ‘the size of a mountain’, ‘you might want to see him’, although he could not name Heuermann.
Suffolk County Police Chief Rodney Harrison said the car was the ‘turning point’ that led to Heuerman’s arrest this week – telling the New York Daily News: ‘Once we got that car, who it was associated with, that’s when the investigation came into play.’
But it has left many wondering why it took cops so long to track down Heuerman as the rare car appears on Google Maps with a 2007 photo.
Police are crediting the mention of a Chevy Avalanche belonging to suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuerman as the ‘turning point’ for leading to his arrest, though many wonder why it took so long to find it.
Manhattan architect Rex Heuerman, 59, is charged with three murders attributed to the Gilgo Beach serial killer, and is the prime suspect in the killing of a fourth victim.
‘It is unclear why Suffolk PD did not collect this information after the discovery of Amber Costello in late 2010,’ one Twitter user noted. ‘It would have at least put Heuermann on their radar much sooner.’
Costello’s pimp admitted that he had planned to rob him before the murder but chose not to take his shot because of the human’s size.
He described the suspect as ‘engaged in prostitution,’ according to the New York Daily News.
Heuerman, 59, was dramatically arrested Thursday night outside his architectural office on Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan, 13 years after the victims’ bodies were found on a secluded Long Island beach.
He is charged with the murders of three Gilgo Beach victims – Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello. He pleaded not guilty.
He is also considered the prime suspect in the death of a fourth woman, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, whose body was found wrapped and hidden in thick underbrush along a remote beach highway, authorities said.
A fleet of forensic investigators continues to comb through Huyman’s home in hopes of uncovering more evidence in a serial killing case that has stumped investigators for more than a decade.
At a news conference Friday, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said Heuerman said police investigating him over the course of a year cited several red flags that Heuerman ‘continued to patronize sex workers,’ using fake IDs and burner phones. , and had permission for an astonishing 92 firearms.
Many people wonder why it took so long to find the hidden car, given how long Heuerman’s car was in, many have noticed that when you search for his address in an address search engine, it clearly comes up with photo dating. Back to 2007
New York state police have removed a large weapon from the Long Island home of suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuerman, a day after searching the property to determine if he left behind any ‘trophies’ from his three victims.
A fleet of forensic investigators continues to comb through Heumann’s home in hopes of uncovering more evidence in a serial killing case that has stumped investigators for more than a decade.
An officer was seen removing two additional firearms from the home on Sunday
On Saturday, police were seen taking away a child-sized blonde doll that was decorated with flowers in a large wooden and glass case.
The creepy doll, adorned with a red bow on top of its head, was one of several items officers dressed in red, hazmat suits, gloves and masks pulled out of the house and loaded into a truck.
“We’re just going through his house, looking for evidence,” a police source told the New York Post. ‘If he had any trophies’ from those whose bodies he dumped on Gilgo Beach.
Neighbors previously said the suspected serial killer was always terrifying, leading some adults to instruct their children to avoid their suburban home.
Now, a criminal profiler who pegged the serial killer as an ‘average Joe’ in 2011 says he is ‘pleased’ to find he was spot-on.
‘When I heard the news yesterday, I had to laugh to myself because it was exactly what I predicted,’ said Scott Bohn, a criminologist, author and serial-killer researcher who has spoken about the Gilgo Beach murders.
Officers combed through the property and loaded several blue plastic containers with weapons into a waiting truck.
The firearms were removed days after it was revealed that Rex Heuerman had an astonishing 92 firearms permits.
He predicted back in 2011 – when an investigation into a possible serial killer began – that the killer would be ‘someone who can walk into a room and look like your average Joe.’
Boon added that the man would be well-organized and meticulous about his work.
Additionally, he said, the killer was ‘persuasive and logical enough’ to convince his victims to meet him on his terms.
‘Who is more organized, who is more meticulous than someone who studied engineering and architecture?’
Scott Bohn, a criminologist, author and serial-killer researcher who spoke about the Gilgo Beach murders, predicted that the serial killer was an ‘average Joe’
Others told The New York Times that the suspect was likely married or in a long-term relationship, well-educated, financially secure with a steady job, owned an expensive car or truck and lived close to where the bodies were found.
At the time of the killing, police said, Heuerman owned a Chevrolet Avalanche.
‘Things about serial killers – at least the ones that are more widespread – are often remarkably common,’ said James Alan Fox, a professor at Northeastern University who has studied serial killers for more than 40 years.
He added that they are very careful not to leave any evidence.
‘They usually have jobs and families and they kill part-time,’ explains Fox. ‘It is not their only activity in life.’
Investigators were seen removing various items outside Human’s Massapequa home on Saturday as they tried to see if any ‘trophies’ were left behind from his alleged victims.
New York State Police are pictured Saturday loading a truck with items from Human’s suburban home
Investigators filled blue bins full of items from the home before loading them into a truck
A New York State Police officer removed a wooden panel while law enforcement searched the home
One item that police said was so large that it required two men to carry it
New York State Police officers move a metal cabinet outside the home
The suspect’s home sits directly north of Gilgo Beach across South Oyster Bay
Those who worked with Heuermann said he was fastidious, impressing some of his clients and annoying others with his attention to detail.
‘(He’s) a gem to deal with, very knowledgeable,’ said Steve Kramberg, a property manager in Brooklyn who worked with Human for 30 years.
She described him as a ‘big goofy guy’ who was ‘a bit on the nerdy side’, revealed as a dedicated worker who was detailed in his work.
According to his website, Heuerman counted American Airlines and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection among his lucrative clients.
But while Kramberg said his rounded availability and attention to detail were a bonus, others were rubbed the wrong way by his animosity.
Paul Tietelbaum, the former board president of a building that hired Heuerman to renovate, said he displayed an attitude: ‘I’m an expert, you’re lucky to have me.’
He added, ‘(He) was a really cold and distant person, kind of creepy.’
Another board member, Kelly Parisi, echoed this when she recalled how the building’s managers eventually fired Heuerman because he was ‘too rude’ and ‘antagonistic with everyone’.
But neighbors saw him differently, with Nicholas Ferchau saying that when he was younger ‘we’d cross the street,’ calling Heuerman ‘someone you don’t want to get close to.’
A crime laboratory officer removed evidence from Heuerman’s home in a small envelope
All items were packaged in blue crates and loaded onto a truck
Drone footage of Heuerman’s home shows police outside the one-story building
Others told DailyMail.com they were not surprised to learn of Human’s alleged crimes.
Mike Schmidt, who has lived in the Massapequa Park neighborhood for a decade, said he often visits his friend whose property backs up to Heuerman.
He said that when they drank beer in the backyard, they would look at the house and comment: ‘There’s probably his body over there.’
Schmidt recalls that while children often avoid haunted houses on Halloween, last year she and her friend took their children to the house — purely to satisfy their curiosity and look inside.
She said they were greeted at the door by Heuerman, who surprised the kids with a full candy pumpkin.
However, Schmidt told the Times that his wife was horrified to find out where the candy came from, forcing him to throw it away.
Another resident, Tara Alonzo, recounts a disturbing run-in she had with Heuerman at the Whole Foods where she works in Long Island.
She told DailyMail.com that she stole the oranges from the store’s kids club, where parents leave their children while they shop. When he confronted the staff, he said, he replied: ‘If I was wearing a suit like I wear most days, you wouldn’t be talking to me like that.’
He said he then walked out of the store with five or six oranges in hand, leaving staff confused by the ‘strange’ customer.
Those who knew Heuerman have given different descriptions, some seeing him as a successful but troubled Manhattan architect and others as a fearsome loner.
Police have released a laundry list of ‘red flags’ they say led them to Heuerman as a suspect, with the first piece of evidence linking a Chevrolet Avalanche he owned and Costello’s killing to a witness.
According to documents filed in Suffolk County Court, investigators were able to link that vehicle to Heumann’s cellphone records, which linked him to locations related to the murder, which ultimately led to a DNA sample.
Police say Heuerman used Melissa Barthelemy’s phone to make harassing calls to her family from the victim’s phone, with the calls being made from his Manhattan office.
After Heuerman was identified as the owner of the Chevrolet, police issued more than 300 subpoenas, search warrants and other legal processes to obtain more evidence.
After the decades-long hunt for the killer seemingly ended this week, dramatic aerial footage revealed a forensic search of his property as authorities continue to try to link him to more unsolved murders.