Long Island Serial Killer, India Moon Mission, and a Salmon ATM

Gilgo Beach Murders Suspect

A man has been charged in connection with a series of unsolved murders on Long Island's South Shore after more than a decade. Rex Heuermann, a 59-year-old licensed architect, was charged with first-degree murder yesterday in the deaths of three women—Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello—whose bodies were found in burlap in 2010 along an oceanfront highway in Gilgo Beach. Heuermann is also a prime suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes but has not been charged with her murder. 

At least 11 sets of human remains—nine women, one man, and a toddler—were found in the area of Gilgo Beach between 2010 to 2011 (see timeline and map). The case arose when 23-year-old Shannan Gilbert from New Jersey was reported missing in Long Island in May 2010 while on an escort job in Oak Beach, a community about 3 miles from Gilgo Beach. While searching for Gilbert, police found the remains of others, including four young women who also were escorts. Gilbert's body was found in December 2011. Investigators for years questioned whether the murders were committed by one person or multiple suspects. 

The killings have been the subject of a 2020 Netflix film, "Lost Girls." Read more about the murders here, or listen to a podcast here. 

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