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On Friday, July 14, authorities released documents that revealed how they came to arrest Rex Heuermann, an architect who has been accused of being the Gilgo Beach serial killer. Heuermann has been charged with six counts of murder, with investigators connecting the architect to 11 sets of human remains that were found along Gilgo beach in 2010 and 2011.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges of first-degree murder.
Trigger warning: This article concerns references to violence and child abuse. Readers' discretion is advised.
Authorities said that they began to suspect Heuermann after probing his search history, which included searches for sadistic, torture-related p*rnography and child abuse-related material.
In response to the shocking revelations, many netizens noted the horrifying fact that Rex Heuermann was a seemingly normal family man with children.
How did Rex Heuermann's google searches lead authorities to him?
As per Suffolk County and New York State authorities, authorities began to suspect Rex Heuermann after they probed his cellphone records. It was then revealed that the architect's phone was tied to several burner numbers, which had reportedly been used to communicate with the victims who were discovered on Gilgo Beach.
The victims were Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Amber Costello, 27, and Megan Waterman, 22. Heuermann is also a suspect in the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, but has not been charged.
Upon discovering that the burners were potentially connected to Heuermann, New York authorities began exploring the suspected serial killer's search history. They discovered that he appeared to be obsessively searching up details of the murder investigation.
As reported by Fox, the searches included "why hasn’t the long island serial killer been caught," and "why could law enforcement not trace the calls made by the long island serial killer." Additionally, he reportedly searched up the victim's children and relatives.
Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney said that Heuermann was also looking up violent and graphic online material:
"[Heuermann] was compulsively searching pictures of the victims. But not only pictures of the victims: Pictures of their relatives, their sisters, their children. And he was trying to locate those individuals."
Netizens shocked by Heuermann's crimes
Netizens were particularly stunned by the nature of the man's internet searches, as they wondered how a family man could look up child abuse. Some also expressed their condolences for the victims' families:
Many netizens took to social media to post their reactions after reading the man's browsing history and going through his court documents:
According to neighbors, Rex Heuermann was always considered strange and intimidating. One neighbor, Barry Auslander, told Newsweek that during Halloween, children were urged to stay away from his home.
Another neighbor, who remained unidentified, said that Heuermann was a quiet neighbor who could occasionally be seen washing his car or doing other chores.
As the allegations against Rex Heuermann came to light, netizens also searched through all online traces of the suspect. As someone who was well known for architectural work, he appeared for an interview on Bonjour Realty, where he discussed his career.
