Who Was Amber Costello Before She Became The Key To Rex Heuermann's Arrest?
About this episode
The episode explores the life of Amber Costello and her crucial role in the investigation leading to Rex Heuermann's arrest.
Amber Costello was twenty-seven, from North Carolina, battling addiction, and living with roommates in West Babylon. Friends described her as generous and funny. Her sister said publicly she forgives Rex Heuermann — and that Amber would have too. And without her case, Heuermann might still be walking free. This look back puts Amber first — her life before the case file — and then traces how the evidence surrounding her disappearance became the key that unlocked the entire Gilgo Beach investigation. The night before Amber vanished, Heuermann was scammed at her address — her roommate ran a hustle, and he left empty-handed. Then came a text from his burner phone. Then he came back. Amber walked out to meet him. Her roommate Dave Schaller saw the truck — a first-generation Chevrolet Avalanche. That description and that text sat in a file for over a decade until the 2022 task force ran them through registration databases and Heuermann's name surfaced. Surveillance followed. Then the pizza-crust DNA. Then the warrants, the house searches, the planning document, the arrest, and ultimately a guilty plea to eight murders. The segment also turns the lens inward through psychotherapist…
Topics covered
- Amber Costello
- Rex Heuermann
- Gilgo Beach murders
- addiction
- disappearance
- investigation
- psychological analysis
Mentioned in this episode
Places: North Carolina, West Babylon
More episodes of The Gilgo Beach Murders: The Case Against Rex Heuermann
- Rex Heuermann's Therapist Hid THIS For Years
- Why Did Rex Heuermann Tell His Daughter The Two Worlds Never Crossed?
- Heuermann's Guilty Plea May Rest on THIS
- Heuermann's Treating Therapist Was Never Licensed
- Is Rex Heuermann Still Controlling The Narrative From Behind Bars?
- What Happens To Rex Heuermann's Family Now That He's Confessed?
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Gilgo Beach Murders: The Case Against Rex Heuermann podcast page.