The Architect's Secret
From Crime at Bedtime by Jack Laurence
April 19, 2026 · 35 min · Season 1 · Episode 165
About this episode
The episode discusses the case of Rex Heuermann, a serial killer linked to the Gilgo Beach murders, detailing the investigation and his eventual arrest and guilty plea.
For 33 years, a serial killer hunted sex workers on Long Island, strangling them and dumping their bodies along a desolate stretch of Ocean Parkway. In December 2010, police searching for missing escort Shannan Gilbert discovered four bodies wrapped in burlap near Gilgo Beach—the "Gilgo Four": Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Lynn Costello. Further searches uncovered four more victims, extending the timeline back to 1993. The case went cold, hampered by police corruption and obstruction. In 2022, a new task force made a breakthrough: a witness remembered a Chevrolet Avalanche picking up victim Amber Costello. The vehicle led them to Rex Heuermann, a 59-year-old Manhattan architect who commuted daily from Massapequa Park. In January 2023, investigators grabbed a discarded pizza box from a Manhattan bin. The DNA on the crust matched hair on victim Megan Waterman's burlap. Heuermann was arrested in July 2023. Police found a vault with 279 weapons in his basement, a deleted planning document titled "HK2002-04" detailing how to kill and dispose of bodies, and burner phones that pinged towers near his home and office. His wife and children had been…
People in this episode
Host: Jack Laurence
Topics covered
- serial killer
- Gilgo Beach murders
- police investigation
- DNA evidence
- criminal justice
- true crime
Keywords
- Gilgo Four
- Long Island
- serial killer
- Rex Heuermann
- police corruption
- DNA evidence
- murder
- true crime
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Crime at Bedtime
Places: Long Island, Ocean Parkway, Gilgo Beach
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