LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: Following Rex Heuermann’s arrest on July 13, many of his acquaintances have come forward with chilling information about the suspected Gilgo Beach killer. The latest in the list is May Shell, a former colleague, and associate of Heuermann, who detailed her experience of working with him.
Shell described how Heuermann behaved at the sight of a young female employee at his firm during the time he was allegedly carrying on with his murderous ventures in a detailed essay published in the New York Magazine. She further claimed that most workers in Heuermann’s firm were young females, describing them as "young and petite, the girl-next-door type."
Who is Mary Shell?
Mary Shell is a former colleague and associate of Heuermann who described her experience of working with Heuermann in vivid detail. Being hired as an "expeditor," Shell said that she was tasked with cutting through the city’s red tape. She described her first meeting with the prime suspect of the Gilgo Beach murders saying that Heuermann "turned red" at the sight of her, adding that he behaved "like that of a shy teenage boy who had been surprised by a hot girl in the cafeteria."
The former colleague also added that she started working at the RH Architecture in September 2007, just months after Jeuermann allegedly killed his first victim, Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Though Shell was working at first through an agency, she was offered a direct position in the company in 2010. According to her, she directly started to work with him in June 2010, specifically highlighting the time as that was when the suspect allegedly killed Megan Waterman. Only a few weeks later, in August, Shell left the firm and she marks this as being significant for the alleged murder of Amber Lynn Costello.
Shell shared that Heuermann allegedly took pleasure in creeping out his employees by sharing gory details of hurting animals, particularly bear hunting. She writes that he "gushed about his bear-hunting trips in particular: baiting an area and lying in wait," before continuing, "more than once, he gleefully described the process of dressing the game, seeming to delight in grossing his employees out." Shell also states how Heuermann was once infuriated when one of his staff members resigned from the company to set up her own business nearby. He was apparently so angry that the staff members feared that the Gilgo Beach murders suspect would probably shoot them up, as recounted by Shell.
Where is Rex Heuermann now?
After his arrest on July 13, Heurmann is currently housed at a Suffolk County jail. The RH Architecture owner is scheduled to appear in court on August 1 as he is being held for the three first and second-degree murders of Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Megan Waterman, 22, and Amber Costello, 27. He is also considered a prime suspect in the death of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, due to inadequate call records. Earlier, Heuermann's attorney declared that he decided to plead not guilty to the murders of the "Gilgo Four."