Rex Heuermann, the New York City architect arrested Thursday night on accusations he murdered at least three sex workers and dumped their bodies near Gilgo Beach on Long Island, reportedly made thousands of Google searches about the murders, child pornography, and other sadistic topics.
(Video credit: FOX 5 New York)
Heuermann, 59, is being charged with six counts of murder. Those include one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder for each of the three alleged victims. The victims are Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello.
The architect has pleaded not guilty to all counts. He was in tears after his arrest, asserting “I did not do this,” his lawyer revealed on Friday according to the New York Post.
(Video Credit: New York Post)
An application for Heuermann revealed details of “thousands” of Google searches for various explicit pornography and searches made for local sex workers, according to Fox News.
The stomach-churning searches included ones for “mistress long island” and “mature escorts Manhattan.” His surfing also allegedly included searches for child pornography.
Suspected Long Island Serial Killer is a straight up GIANT! Look how tall he is. Very different from Richard Allen in the Adelphi Murders #RexHeuermann #longislandserialkiller #gilgobeachmurders pic.twitter.com/LjFojL2zDE
— Annie Elise x 10 to LIFE (@_10toLIFE) July 14, 2023
A Google search history was obtained by law enforcement via a warrant on a “junk” and “burner” email account.
The email address was discovered after Google was issued a warrant seeking records or accounts associated with burner phones that were secured by Heuermann.
The bail application indicates that between March 2022 and June 2023, Heuermann made over 200 Google searches that were related to the disappearances and murders of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Barthelemy, Waterman, and Costello. He is the prime suspect in Brainard-Barnes’s death as well.
Among the alleged searches were the phrases, “10 year old school girl” and “girl begging for rape porn,” according to prosecutors.

WARNING: Explicit content.
BRB vomiting. Articles online have shown that his daughter has red hair. What in the actual hell?! #GilgoBeach #RexHeuermann #GilgoBeach #longislandserialkiller pic.twitter.com/SRzdyIDQQh
— Annie Elise x 10 to LIFE (@_10toLIFE) July 14, 2023
Included in the Google searches were queries such as “Why could law enforcement not trace the calls made by the long island serial killer,” “Why hasn’t the long island serial killer been caught,” “In Long Island serial killer investigation, new phone technology may be key to break in case,” and numerous others.
The architect was allegedly searching for documentaries and podcasts related to the murder investigations. He also read numerous articles on the subject as well, according to Fox News.
That same bail application allegedly revealed that his own wife’s hair and a discarded pizza box linked him to the murders after 13 years, according to the Daily Beast.
“The bail document, obtained by The Daily Beast, said detectives were able to trace hair left behind on three of the murder victims to Heuermann’s wife, who has not been charged with a crime. The wife’s DNA was gathered from a swab of bottles that she left outside for trash collection,” the media outlet reported.
(Video Credit: CBS New York)
The document also stated that a single strand of Heuermann’s hair was found on one victim. It was matched to the architect’s DNA when undercover cops were able to snatch a discarded pizza box and test a pizza crust left behind by Heuermann, prosecutors said.
Despite tears when he was taken into custody, Heuermann reportedly “smirked throughout” his arraignment, which ended with a judge denying him bail.
Gilgo Beach has become infamously associated with the string of murdered sex workers, deemed the “The Gilgo Four,” since their bodies were discovered strangled and wrapped in burlap in 2010. Six more bodies were later discovered in the area. Heuermann is expected to get nailed for all of them due to a reported mountain of evidence against him.
Several shocking new details about the alleged crimes of Rex Heuermann. Source: NY Post #RexHeuermann #GilgoBeach #gilgobeachmurders #longislandserialkiller pic.twitter.com/FENdCpBIdB
— Annie Elise x 10 to LIFE (@_10toLIFE) July 14, 2023
“Heuermann was nabbed less than a year after the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office set up a new task force to probe the killings. Within months, he was ID’d as a person of interest because he owned a Chevrolet Avalanche truck at the time of the murders—the same type of truck spotted by a witness at a victim’s home just before she was killed,” the Daily Beast further reported.
Heuermann is a family man who is married to his second wife Asa Ellerup, 59. They have two children, a daughter and a son.
To the police, he is “a demon who walks among us. A predator who ruins families,” Suffolk County Police Chief Rodney Harrison commented, according to the New York Post.
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