Map indicating location of bodies discovered at Gilgo Beach, Author Atiru
(CC BY-SA 4.0 International)
WARNING: Graphic Images
Gilgo Beach is a quiet stretch of sandy coastline on Long Island, NY, made infamous by the serial killings which have been uncovered there [1].
Shockingly, the remains of up to 18 victims, murdered between 1996 and 2011, have been found in the general area. For the most part, these victims — the majority of them women — are believed to have been sex workers.
Serial Predator
Rex Heuermann — a 59 y.o. married architect and father of two — has been charged in the murders of three such victims (Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Costello, and Megan Waterman) [2]. He is the prime suspect in the murder of a fourth (Maureen Brainard-Barnes). There is speculation that he may be responsible for many more.
Investigative Delay
The identification of victims was necessarily a lengthy and complex process.
However, the FBI did not become officially involved in this investigation until 5 years after the first remains were located by Suffolk County Police [3]. For reasons of his own, former Police Chief James Burke is said actually to have blocked that involvement [4].
There is, also, widespread suspicion among family members of the victims that Suffolk Police did not prioritize the investigation because these women were prostitutes, rather than “upstanding” members of the community.
Child Abuse and Prostitution
A. Sexual Abuse
What is particularly tragic about this story is that there is every likelihood the women had already been the victims of childhood sexual abuse. Continue reading
ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 