Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Gilgo Beach Horror Grows as Serial Killer Investigation Deepens

Episode Date: June 16, 2026

Rodney Harrison was the Suffolk County Police Commissioner who was instrumental in building the Gilgo Beach Task Force that identified Rex Heuermann as the murderer of eight women on Long Island over a nearly 20 year period. Heuermann will be formally sentenced on June 17, 2026 to several consecutive life sentences. Law&Crime's Angenette Levy talks with Harrison about the case, the victims and the future of the investigation in this episode of Crime Fix — a daily show covering the biggest stories in crime.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: Download the FREE Upside App at https://upside.app.link/crimefix to get an extra 25 cents bonus for every gallon on your first tank of gas.Host:Angenette Levy  https://twitter.com/Angenette5Guest: Rodney Harrison https://www.youtube.com/@THERISKROOM1CRIME FIX PRODUCTION:Head of Social Media, YouTube - Bobby SzokeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinVideo Editing - Daniel CamachoGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A secret investigation, a shocking suspect, and the moment the net closed in. And we were able to say on July 13th at 8.30 p.m., it's time to move in on Rex Herman. He helped crack one of America's most haunting serial killer mysteries. Were you surprised when they came to you and said Rex Horman is our prime suspect, that it was an architect working here in Manhattan? Now former police commissioner Rodney Harrison is revealing what he really thinks about the man who terrorized Long Island for years. You know, before we get into this incredibly horrific case about the Gilgo Beach serial killings, I want to tell you about an app that I've been using that I really like. It's called Upside.

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To start getting your cash back, click the link in the description. or scan the QR code that you see on your screen and use our promo code Crime Fix to get an extra 25-cent bonus on every gallon on your first tank of gas. I'm Ann Janette Levy, and this is a special edition of Crime Fix coming to you from Midtown Manhattan. I'm standing at the corner of Fifth Avenue and East 36th Street. This is the area where Rex Hureman, the Gilgo Beach serial killer, was taken into custody nearly three years ago for those horrific murders. First started killing in 1993 when he was 29 years old. Now he's 57, 58 years old. He probably thought he still got away with it.

And for us to come out the blue, grab him out of his office, catch him right a couple of yards away from him heading home. It probably surprised him, I think. Former Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison helped form the Gilgo Beach Task Force, which led to Rex Heurman being identified as the prime suspect in the murders. It was July 13, 2023, when he was, Heerman was leaving work as he usually did. He was walking down Fifth Avenue near 36th Street when

law enforcement moved in. Now nearly three years later, Heurman has pleaded guilty to the murders of seven women. The first, Sandra Castilla, in November 1993. Valerie Mack was killed in 2000, Jessica Taylor in 2003. Then Maureen Brainerd Barnes was murdered in 2007. Two years later in 2009, Melissa Bartholomey vanished. Megan Waterman died in June. June 2010, and a few months after that, Amber Lynn Costello disappeared in September 2010. Hureman admitted to the murder of an eighth woman, Karen Vergata, in 1996, but he didn't enter a plea in her death. Some people believed that the murders might never be solved. The bodies of the Gilgo Four. Marine Brainer Barnes, Megan Waterman, Amber Costello, and Melissa Bartholomey were discovered

along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach in December 2010. The grim discovery of the bodies of four petite women who worked as sex workers rocked Long Island and led to one of the longest and most intense serial killing investigations in New York history. The investigation made good progress early on, with investigators uncovering cell phone pings from Massapequa Park on Long Island and Midtown Manhattan. But then in 2012, a new police chief James Burke took over and the investigation's momentum seemed to stall. The feds were pushed out and the Gilgo Beach serial killer case appeared to go cold. Then Rodney Harrison was named Suffolk County Police Commissioner in late 2021. At the same time, Ray Tierney won the Suffolk County DA's race,

and the following year, the Gilgo Beach Task Force was born. So when I reached out to the FBI, they had some concerns, and I said, hey, listen, we're starting up this task force. We have the district attorney's office working with us, state police is working with us. We like to maybe see if you could help out. I understand there might have been some frustrations in the past and he told me absolutely not.

We're not working with you or your investigators over there because they've been outcasted in the past. They haven't had access to the case and investigative steps that were done. This is somewhat of a common occurrence where investigators don't want outside help. He feels as though they could handle investigations by themselves. the Suffolk County Police Department doesn't necessarily have the top notch when it comes to resources and databases. And that's why the FBI, I thought, would be extremely instrumental in which they end up being. So I had to kind of explain to them, like, going forward,

you're not going to have any moral problems. And if you do, I'm here now. Me being a little bit of an outsider, I didn't have any allegiances or had to feel I had to placate to anybody Another issue that I forecasted was if the FBI had to walk into the office where the Suffolk County investigators were, they probably would feel a little bit of attention if they had to respond there. So the strategy was this. cultivate a office where they can be designated off by themselves. Get the couple investigators from the homicide team in Suffolk County. Get some people from the state police. They provided a female investigator that was phenomenal.

The FBI, as well as the sheriff's office, all working under one roof, one office, and put their hands together, their heads together, excuse me, to take a closer look at what mistakes were made in the earlier parts of investigation and what we need to do going forward. The work of solving the Gilgo Beach murders had renewed energy. There was vital cell phone evidence and a witness description from the roommate of Amber Costello who said one of her clients drove a green Chevy avalanche. And the green avalanche really cracked this case wide open. The green avalanche, the database check into Massapeco Park, looking for somebody that had a green avalanche because one of Amber Costello's roommate shared that one of Amber Costello's

clients drove a green avalanche. Taking that information and being able to look at green avalanches inside the Massapeco Park area was the game changer in the investment. And he looked like an ogre. Wasn't that the description? That helped as well. You know, that was one of the reasons why he kind of stood out so much. Him being six, four, three hundred pounds, looking like an ogre, bushy hair. He's one of the individuals that Amber Costello's roommates chose not to rob. And that was one of their things that they would do. Anytime a client would come by, they would, what's called him.

come by, what's called Roll him and take their money. He chose not to roll this individual because of his size, but they did remember him, and they do remember the car that he drove. A search of green avalanches in Massapequa Park led to one name, Rex Ehrman, an architect who lived there and worked in Manhattan. But there was still more work to do. The investigation revealed Rex Eurman liked to patronize sex workers and sometimes sent them selfies, and he would often do so.

Using prepaid burner phones. Everything from internet searches to getting burner phones and him on certain internet set, excuse me, applications to engage with sex workers and some other things that really troubled us to show that he was involved with sex workers. And his one engagement with Amber Constella was not the only time. time he was involved in his activity. It really showed that this person lives, what I'll say, a deviant life, lifestyle. And then there was the DNA evidence, a sample of Heurman's DNA collected from pizza crust that he had tossed in the trash. So my biggest problem with the DNA

coming back is it took a long time. And when we got the pizza crust and we sent it to the lab, out in Pennsylvania. I wanted to make sure, and this is once again, this is kind of like a NYPD executive thing, we wanted them to let it be known that this case is not just your average case. This is a serial killer case that's over 10 years old, and we need the results right away. Can you please put this on the top of your cases? And I'm not sure what misunderstanding happened or occurred. But it didn't get prioritized.

And I kept calling to see what was taking so long and they didn't have the answers. And I got so frustrated that I had my deputy police commissioner, Anthony Carter, take a riot out there, sit down with the scientists and explain to them, hey, listen, I don't know if you know what's going on with this case, but we need the results back as quickly as possible. And the unfortunate part is they did not know that in the beginning part. But once we had that sit down with them, we got right on it and we got the results back in a timely manner. When the DNA came back as a match to Harris found on the victims, it was time to indict Rex Sherman and police moved in to make the arrest on July 13th, 2023. So he's just walking down Fifth Avenue, as any other New Yorker would be doing, coming out of work, you decide it's a safety issue. So that's why you move in on him on the street because you don't know what. what could happen if you take him into custody in his office?

He could have a weapon in there. Other people could be put in danger, right? Well, my concern, just being in law enforcement for 30 years and knowing somebody's registered, at the time, 97 registered guns attacks to them, my biggest concern was if we move in on him, is this going to be a situation where it could turn into a shootout? So I did have some concern, does he carry a gun?

Was there a gun inside the bag? you know, he's a big guy, so you're going to push off and then start a big shootout. So there were some concerns about talking to the men and women assigned to the task force, they thought this was the best strategy, working with Ray Turney, making sure that, you know, we try to get an opportunity to talk to him, see if he'd be willing to share some information, is the reason why we locked him up here, and the strategy was to transport him back to to Yappank, Long Island, to see if he'd be willing to cooperate, but he didn't. Were you surprised that he didn't want to talk, that he

lawyered up? I'm not sure if the word is surprised. I will say this, just knowing that he didn't want to say anything. That's kind of something that people that commit crimes do all the time. They just was called lawyer up. So him asking for a lawyer is not a big shock for me. Once again, his reaction was a little alarming.

It raised my attention a little bit because, once again, If you're being accused for the deaths of the women from Ocean Parkway and the only response or reaction is, I want a lawyer? I don't know. I really, really, when I heard that information, it raised some concern. Rex Sheuhrman was booked on murder charges. Rodney, this is your first time here at the spot where Rex Eurman was taken into custody almost three years ago. So what's it like to be standing here in the spot where, you know, your officers scooped him up? Well, listen, I don't have any necessarily feelings about being here right now.

I just know that the men and women assigned to the task force really did a great job, keeping tabs on his whereabouts, making sure we cultivated signs of evidence to attach them to the bodies that were discovered on Ocean Parkway. And then compliments to Ray Turney that was able to make a decision. pulled the trigger regards to the day of where and when we're going to place them under arrest. So it was a nice team effort of law enforcement officials out in Suffolk County that allowed this location to be the place where we got this horrible individual off the streets. Were you surprised when they came to you and said Rex Sherman is our prime suspect, that it was an architect working here in Manhattan, that this was your guy? A guy who looks like,

just a family man going to work each day at his architectural firm? So serial killers come in all shifts and sizes. Listen, I wasn't necessarily in a place where I automatically assumed that Rick Sherman was like, I know it still needed to be a lot more of an investigation to try to attach him to the death of these women. So, and this is a homicide investigation one-on-one. Like you don't get a suspect, it automatically would automatically say all of this stuff. person, you have to now start building the case up and what can we do to attach him to the deaths. And it's either technology, it's sciences, it's cooperated, there's a lot of different

roles of evidence that we had to put together to say, hey, listen, rectory women's like I guy. But one thing I will say is this, even once we had him identified, we still continued in investigation and tried to get people to cooperate from a host of different ways. And as the case started building, we started seeing some of his habits. And that kind of strengthened our situation of making him a person of interest. As the months wore on, Heurman was charged with murdering more women, Maureen Bairns, Sandra Castilla, Jessica Taylor, and Valerie Mack. For more than two years, at least publicly, Rex Heurman maintained he didn't commit the murders,

despite overwhelming DNA evidence from hairs that linked him to the killings of seven of the women. April 2026, Heerman changed his plea. Have you discussed this case with your attorney? Yes, I have. Have you had enough time to discuss this case with your attorney? Yes, I have. After discussions with your lawyer, do you feel it's in your best interest to prove guilty rather than a trial?

Yes, Your Honor. The families of the victims were spared to trial and hearing the gruesome details about what happened to their mothers, daughters, and sisters. And I am the daughter of Megan Waterman. And on behalf of her and my aunt and all of our family back home, we do. accept and we are very very thankful for everything that they've done for us. Today that long painful journey brings us to this moment our mission, our promise to Marine is finally met with accountability. For Melissa's, Megan's,

Ambers, Jessica's, Valerie's, Sandra's and Karen's family, I stand with you in deep love and understanding. No one should ever have to walk this path yet here we all are. Connected by loss, by strength, and the unbreakable bond of our loved ones. The bond some of us has created has been one that is unique in a sense that it did not form from a previous friendship or blood. It was created by trying to pick up the pieces of our world that had shattered in tragedy. And I am so grateful for us. To every family out there still searching, still waiting, still holding on,

please do not give up hope. even when it feels impossible, even when the years pass and the silence grow heavy, keep going. Your loved ones matter. They are not forgotten, and one day answers can come. Finally, to Maureen, the promise I made to you so long ago was simple. I would never stop searching for justice for you. Through every year, every stepback, every unanswered question, I carried you with me, and I kept that promise. And today it has been done. Justice has finally found its way to you.

Your voice was never silence, your story never forgotten, and your life will always be more than the tragedy that took you. This moment is not the end, but a reminder that love indoors, truth prevails, and hope never fades because even in the darkest moments, justice will find its way. D.A. Ray Tierney hinted that there was even more evidence than the public had not known about previously. This division, we recovered a bounty paper towel off of the crime scene of Megan Waterman. They processed that and they compared that to the same bounty towel that we recovered in the home of the defendant. They matched, and this was a memento that we argued the defendant kept, would have been a key piece of evidence.

We're now a couple of days out from the sentencing. What are your thoughts and feelings? You were such a vital part of actually bringing that task force together and finally bringing this to a conclusion. Listen, I'm an advocate for victims. We have survivors involved, the family members, that unfortunately with so many years without any questions answered, just being able to bring some level of closure and comfort to them, knowing that the person that took your loved one away will never see the light of day again. there's a little bit of happiness knowing that I had a role in getting this person into jail

and hopefully be off the streets for the rest of his life. Do you think that he has committed more murders than the ones that he's pleading guilty to? I do believe that there should be a continued investigation into Rex Sherman. I know that his DNA will eventually go into the quota system, and hopefully with the task force still being put in place, They may be able to say either identify other bodies that may not have been identified or discovered towards Rex Sherman. So listen, I'm not going to sit here and speculate and say there's more bodies attached, but I'm just glad to see that there's going to be a continued investigation to rule out if there is or is not other victims out there that are attached to Rex Sherman.

Rodney Harrison has written a book about his career and the Gilgo Beach murders. It's entitled The Commissioner, from street cop to top cop in the NYPD and the inside story of the hunt for the Gilgo Beach serial killer. And on Wednesday, June 17th, Rex Hurerman will be formally sentenced for those seven horrific murders. He will be sentenced to several consecutive life sentences. He's also, as I mentioned, admitted to an eighth murder, the murder of Karen Vergata. Law and crime will have complete coverage of that for you. Again, I'm Ann Jeanette Levy in Midtown Manhattan. Thank you so much for watching this episode of Crime Fix.

I'll see you back here next time.