New records indicate that police followed the daughter of alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann home and finally used her discarded energy drink as part of their murder probe. A recently published photo shows Rex Heuermann’s daughter, Victoria, being trailed by cops as she boarded a Long Island Rail Road train.
Suffolk County prosecutors have filed fresh accusations against Heuermann in connection with the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Her remains were discovered among the bodies of three other women on Long Island’s Gilgo Beach in 2010. Brainard-Barnes disappeared in 2007.
Brainard-Barnes’ family has spoken out publicly for the first time.”I was only 7 years old when my mother was murdered. Her loss drastically changed the trajectory of my life,” her daughter Nicolette Brainard-Barnes said. “While the loss of my mom has been extremely painful for me, the indictment by the grand jury has brought hope for justice for my mom and my family.”
Rex Heuermann connected to murder via wife’s DNA on the belt
Rex Heuermann was linked to Brainard-Barnes’ murder through DNA from a female hair found in the buckle of a belt used to tie her ankles, feet, and legs. It matched Heuermann’s wife, Asa Ellerup or Victoria.
However, prosecutors observed that the hair was transported from Heuermann to the victims, and they stated unequivocally that his family was out of time when the killings occurred. “Asa Ellerup and her children were not involved, not even in the jurisdiction when these murders took place,” Ellerup’s attorney Robert Madedonio told CBS News.
Defending Heuermann in court, his attorney Michael Brown said “You’re talking about a gentleman who has never been arrested before. He’s a productive member of society. He’s going to work every day. Also he’s supporting his family, and he’s incarcerated. And he’s claiming he didn’t do this. But he is looking forward to having his day in a courtroom.”
Rex Heuermann’s arrest is linked to the ‘Gilgo Four,’ the four women whose bodies were discovered within days of each other in 2010. The women in question were Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Megan Waterman, 22, Amber Lynn Costello, 27, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25.
