THE investigation into suspected serial killer Rex Heuermann has been expanded to determine if he was involved in the deaths of two other women.

Two additional investigators were assigned to the Gilgo Beach task force by Police Commissioner Rodney K. Harrison.

The investigators are tasked with working on the backgrounds of Valerie Mack and Karen Vergata, two sex workers who are believed to be victims of the Gilgo Beach murderer. 

They are also working to vet numerous tips while others attempt to identify the remains of three other bodies found near Gilgo Beach.

“I thought it was a good idea to grab some people from the outside to take a look at other things that maybe, potentially attach themselves to Rex Heuermann,” said Harrison.

“This is something I need – a dedicated team of investigators to prioritize, to come to work – not going to do anything, but looking to see if you can attach them to where they came from,” he added.

“Once we get that, then maybe we go forward with either [the bodies] being something that Rex Heuermann might have been involved in or identify another subject who might have been involved.”

Mack, 24, disappeared from her New Jersey home in the summer of 2000.

Her dismembered corpse was found in two different locations across Long Island, including Ocean Parkway.

Mack’s half-sister, Tricia Hazen, said she was asked about Mack’s family history by detectives.

Copies of letters Mack sent to different family members were also collected by investigators.

Hazen said detectives were trying to a timeline to show where Mack was traveling.

“This is not going to be solved overnight,” she told Newsday. “I am grateful for the deep dive into Valerie and the other woman killed.”

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Meanwhile, the body of Vergata, 34, was found on Fire Island in April 1996. 

Her skull was found over a decade later in April 2011 along Ocean Parkway. 

Vergata’s remains were linked by DNA analysis in July 2011 and were identified by genetic genealogy in October 2022, said Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney in an August press conference. 

Vergata is believed to have disappeared around Valentine’s Day 1996, however, she was never reported missing. 

“We have to look at what happened on Fire Island and take a look at that investigation and how it went from Fire Island over to Ocean Parkway,” said Harrison.

“We will continue to work hard to see if we can attach these other unidentified bodies that were discovered on Ocean Parkway, so it is a work in progress.”

There are still three unidentified remains found near GilGo Beach, including a woman known as Peaches due to her tattoo, a toddler later identified as her child, and an Asian man.

Officials said genetic genealogy is being used to identify the victims – particularly Peaches, who may have relatives in Alabama.

Rex Heuermann was arrested and charged with the deaths of three women whose bodies were dumped along Gilgo Beach in December 2010: Megan Waterman, 22, Melissa Barthelemy, 24, and Amber Lynn Costello, 27.

He is also considered the main suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25. 

Heuermann pleaded not guilty, however, prosecutors say that a DNA sample he was ordered to take matched DNA from a pizza crust found outside his office in Midtown Manhattan.

This matched DNA found in a hair on the body of Waterman in 2010.

He is due back in court on November 15.