LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: The critical piece of evidence in the prosecution of the alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer, Rex Heuermann, set out on its protracted journey back to New York on Tuesday, July 18. South Carolina cops seized a second Chevy Avalanche linked to Heuermann, and New York State troopers towed it away, as per New York Post. Authorities hope that information uncovered in the rare first-generation Chevy Avalanche would support their strong case against the Manhattan architect charged with three murders at Gilgo Beach.
According to images obtained by Fox News, the Chevy Avalanche was removed from a remote property owned by Heuermann and his brother while attached to the back of a New York State police flat-bed truck. It is now being investigated as part of the horrific Long Island killings of at least three New York women. Another model of the distinctive car was discovered at the alleged murderer's Massapequa Park house over the weekend. This discovery is the result of an important tip that allowed police to make significant progress in the 13-year-old Gilgo Beach murders investigation.
How many cars does Rex Heuermann have?
According to reports, the Gilgo Beach murders suspect Heuermann allegedly has two cars — a green truck and a rare first-generation Chevy Avalanche. Last week, the green truck was impounded at the rural Chester, South Carolina, home of Rex Heuermann's younger brother Craig.
Rex Heuermann, 59, is suspected of murdering three prostitutes in Long Island and disposing of their bodies on Gilgo Beach in 2009 and 2010. Heuermann is also anticipated to face charges of a fourth murder. Authorities connected the Avalanche to Amber Lynn Costello's slaying, one of the sex workers whose body was discovered in December 2010. Costello had been missing for three years when her remains were found. The car was spotted in Costello's driveway by a witness. According to Daily Mail, Heuermann sold the car to his brother, who used it frequently to get around his 18-acre Chester, South Carolina, compound.
According to land registry records, Rex Heuermann paid $154,000 for a plot of land in Chester, and neighbors claim he intended to build a "compound" there with his brother, who resides in the high-security residence. The day after Heuermann was detained outside of his Midtown Manhattan office, authorities swarmed the dilapidated property on Friday, July 14, and seized the vehicle.
Chevy Avalanche was vital tip in solving Long Island murders
The information about the Chevy Avalanche was key to solving the unsolved Long Island murders that ultimately led to Heuermann's arrest. Initially though, police had overlooked it. It was only after the case was reopened and reexamined last year that the significance of the car became apparent. The car had been described to police by a pimp for Lynn Costello, one of four women who were found dead in 2010 in a swampy area of the South Shore not far from Heuermann's house. Using the car's registration, witness testimony, phone records, and even DNA extracted from discarded pizza crusts, a joint state and county investigation was able to identify Rex Heuermann and arrest him.
It is uncertain which of the cars — the one from South Carolina or the one from Heuermann's Massapequa Park residence — was the one the pimp recognized. Rex was the car's registered owner at the time of the murders, court documents stated, but neighbors corroborated that Craig often drove the car that police had seized.