Prosecutors filed another murder charge Tuesday against the man accused in the Gilgo Beach serial killings, bringing the number of alleged victims to seven — all women who were slain near New York City.
A hair linked to the wife or daughter of suspect Rex Heuermann was found near the left wrist of 24-year-old victim Valerie Mack, according to court documents.
Heuermann's daughter would have been 4 at the time of Mack's killing and his now-estranged wife is not considered a suspect in any of these slayings.
Mack worked as an escort before her skeletal remains were found in 2000 and 2011, taking years for her to be identified.
Mack's killer severed her right leg, which had a tattoo of her son's name on it, prosecutors said.
Notes found on the suspect's computer, which prosecutors have called his "planning document," called "for the removal of identifying marks on the victim's body," such as tattoos, "prior to packaging the body for transportation."
Investigators believe the killer cut off "Mack's lower right leg at mid-calf to inhibit and/or delay the identification of Ms. Mack's tattoo and therefore, Ms. Mack," prosecutors said in court documents.
Many of the victims were sex workers who allegedly met Heuermann after advertising their services.
"The lives of these women matter," Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney told reporters in Riverhead.
"We as investigators, we understand that. Obviously no one understands it more than the families. So again, we’re just delighted and honored and privileged to be able to work with these families."
Heuermann, 61, spoke briefly in court Tuesday and denied involvement in the woman’s slayings and the dumping of her remains, which were found along the southern shore of Long Island.
“Your honor, I am not guilty of any of these charges,” he said.
Outside court, defense lawyer Michael Brown said he'll attack the company doing DNA testing for investigators.
The defense is also considering whether to ask for the trial to be moved out of Suffolk County or to have the seven murder charges broken into separate cases.
"I know he’s extremely frustrated, he has said from day one he is not responsible for these murders," Brown told reporters. "He wants his day in court."
Investigators are still working on other nearby, unsolved murders to see if they could be linked to Heuermann, officials said.
No one has yet been arrested in the slaying of Karen Vergata, 34, who had previously been dubbed “Jane Doe Seven.” Sets of her remains were found in 1996 and 2011.
Police are still looking for the killer of a victim dubbed "Asian Doe." The person, whose body was found in 2011, has been described by authorities as a “biological male” of Chinese descent who was wearing women’s clothes when the remains were discovered.
There’s no telling how many possible victims could be out there, and an “army” of investigators is pursuing numerous cold cases in the area, according to Tierney.
The prosecutor spoke to reporters with loved ones of several victims standing behind him.
"Let's be clear, none of the victims deserve to die," said attorney Gloria Allred, representing the families of several victims. "They were all innocent and they were just trying to earn some funds to support themselves and their families. They were and they are loved and they are missed every day."
Mack's loved ones have been kept in the loop on the probe, officials said, leading to Heuermann being charged.
"They are very grateful," Tierney said. "They are very grateful for the small bit of closure that the task force has been able to provide."
The charge connected to Mack comes after Heuermann was accused by Suffolk County prosecutors of murdering Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, Amber Costello, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Sandra Costilla and Jessica Taylor.
Costilla was killed in 1993, Taylor in 2003, Brainard-Barnes in 2007, Barthelemy in 2009 and Costello and Waterman in 2010, officials said.
Heuermann, a New York City architect, was arrested in July 2023 and initially indicted in connection with the slayings of Barthelemy, Waterman and Costello.
