Gilgo Beach serial killings suspect to plead guilty, US media report

A New York architect charged with seven murders in Gilgo Beach on Long Island is expected to change his plea to guilty, US media reports.

Rex Heuermann, 62, previously pleaded not guilty in the killings of seven women between 1993 and 2011.

Prosecutors have said they found DNA evidence that linked Heuermann to the crime scenes. They accused him of "methodically" planning the murders in "excruciating detail".

Heuermann is expected to appear before a judge on 8 April, when US media report he could change his plea. He had been scheduled to go on trial in September.

Since 2010, police have been investigating a string of at least 10 deaths in Gilgo Beach. Officials say they have connected Heuermann to seven of those deaths.

Heuermann was arrested outside his Manhattan office in July 2023 and charged with the murders of three women - Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Megan Waterman, 22, and Amber Costello, 27.

Over the course of the following year and a half, he was charged with another four: Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, Jessica Taylor, 20, Valerie Mack, 24, and Sandra Costilla, 28.

Most of the victims' remains were found not far from Heuermann's Long Island home, authorities said.

The women were believed to have been sex workers at the time of their deaths.

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney previously said officials had found a document they believed Heuermann used when planning his crimes, which included columns labelled "problems" and "supplies".

Under the "problems" column, "DNA", "tire marks" and "blood stains" were among items listed.

The document also included killing methods Heuermann allegedly had researched and lessons from past murders.

As part of their investigation, prosecutors also seized hundreds of electronic devices and 300 guns from Heuermann's home.

Heuermann's lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.