Gilgo Beach suspect Rex Heuermann loses bid to toss DNA evidence at upcoming murder trial

Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann lost a long-shot bid to have damning DNA evidence thrown out Wednesday, after a New York judge ruled that prosecutors can use the evidence against him at trial in a decision police expect to impact far more cases.

Heuermann’s shocking arrest came more than a decade after the death of his last known alleged victim. At the time, he was a New York City architect who commuted daily from his home in the suburban village of Massapequa Park. Prosecutors have alleged he tortured and killed his victims in the basement while his wife and children took vacations. 

The sides had been tangling over the evidence since March, when the judge held a Frye hearing to determine whether the new type of DNA testing should be admissible. Heuermann’s attorney, Michael Brown, had questioned the validity of new testing on rootless hair samples, which he likened to “magic” and said had not been used in New York state before.

Prosecutors allege that the state-of-the-art technology linked hairs found on six of the seven murder victims to Heuermann. Brown said it’s “a little weird” that each of the bodies is linked to his client by just one hair apiece. The hairs themselves do not all belong to Heuermann. Some were linked to his wife and daughter — whom authorities do not believe were involved in the crimes but whose hairs were allegedly transferred to the victims by Heuermann.

“So we have now nuclear DNA, we have mitochondrial DNA, we have phone records, we have witness statements, we have financial records, we have internet searches, we have phone activity and we have other [evidence],” he told reporters. “When you look at the interaction of all of that evidence, it’s, we would submit, compelling.” 

Next up for Heuermann is a hearing on whether he should be tried on all of the cases together. His lawyer wants them split up, but Tierney said he believes they are all “intertwined” and should be tried at the same time.

It was the disappearance of another woman that set off the whole case – and surprised the residents of Long Island, which includes the two easternmost boroughs of New York City and a pair of suburban counties.

In 2010, Shannan Gilbert placed a frantic and incoherent 911 call, begging for help and claiming someone was after her. The search for her went on for months — and before police found her remains, they found 10 other bodies along Ocean Parkway. Her death is the only one that police have said they believe was accidental.