Shocking Document Allegedly Detailed Gilgo Beach Suspect’s Plans For Killings
Investigators who searched the Long Island, New York, home of the suspect in the Gilgo Beach serial killings, Rex Heuermann, discovered a Microsoft Word “planning document” that they say provided a blueprint for the killings of several women, authorities in Suffolk County announced Thursday.
Heuermann, who had already been charged in the deaths of four women, known as the “Gilgo Four” ― Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, Amber Lynn Costello, 27, and Megan Waterman, 22 ― was arraigned Thursday on additional charges of murder in the deaths of Jessica Taylor, 20, and Sandra Costilla, 28.
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Heuermann, a 60-year-old architect, has pleaded not guilty.
His defense attorney, Micheal Brown, told CNN that his client is “in a bad place in terms of the new charges.”
“One murder is obviously horrific, and it’s a difficult thing to defend,” Brown said after Heuermann appeared in court Thursday. “And now we’re at six.”
Brown did not respond to a request for comment from HuffPost.
The new charges follow a lengthy investigation and search of Heuermann’s Massapequa Park home, where detectives collected possible evidence that included more than 350 electronic devices. They said they found images depicting violent sexual acts on the devices, along with the chilling document that they alleged planned out the slayings, according to a bail application released Thursday.
![Rex Heuermann, charged in the Gilgo Beach serial killings on Long Island, appears Thursday for a hearing at Suffolk County Court in Riverhead, New York. Heuermann was charged Thursday in the deaths of two more women after prosecutors said they gathered new DNA evidence and found a computer document they said contained a “blueprint” of the crimes.](./../wp-content/uploads/2024/06/shocking-document-allegedly-detailed-gilgo-beach-suspects-plans-for-killings.jpg)
James Carbone/Newsday via Associated Press, Pool
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The document was labeled “HK2002-04” and discovered on a hard drive’s “unallocated space,” frequently used to store data that has been deleted by users, according to the bail application.
Details in the alleged planning document were split into four categories, which outlined “problems” that could arise during a killing, such as leaving DNA evidence and being pulled over by police. Heuermann also allegedly noted supplies that would help avoid capture, including a “police scaner” and hair nets.
![An image of the so-called planning document cited in Rex Heuermann's bail application was provided by the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.](./../wp-content/uploads/2024/06/shocking-document-allegedly-detailed-gilgo-beach-suspects-plans-for-killings-1.jpg)
Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office
The document also mentioned a possible “dump site” to dispose of remains, according to the bail application. Prosecutors said the remains of two of the women were found near Mill Road and Ocean Parkway, a location mentioned in the document. Other notes in the document also matched details of the killings, authorities said, including the removal of arms and heads from victims’ remains and destruction of identifying tattoos.
Prosecutors also claimed that one section in the document, titled TRG, which they alleged refers to “targets,” included the phrase “small is good,” which they say is consistent with the victims being petite women.
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According to the bail application, the document allegedly includes a meticulous guide on how to avoid being caught, organized by preparation and aftermath categories.
A “things to remember” section allegedly noted several times the importance of sleep before a “hunt,” according to the bail application.
“Get sleep before hunt too tired create problems,” Heuermann allegedly wrote. “More sleep & noise control = more play time.”
Investigators said the document also made notes and referenced pages of “Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit,” a book by former FBI profiler John Douglas, who interviewed dozens of serial killers, and co-author Mark Olshaker. “The more you do the more clues you give,” the document said, which investigators noted was from the book.
A representative of Douglas did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
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