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Watch Killing Grounds The Gilgo Beach Murders () free Season 1 Episode 2 online in HD on Dailymotion (2026).
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00:12The day Shannon Gilbert disappeared, we know for sure is that she called 9-1-1.
00:21Highly unusual thing for a sex worker to do.
00:24But for me to find out what was on that tape, the police refused to give it to me or
00:31anybody else.
00:32So I had to sue the police department twice.
00:37And I won the case.
00:39And finally they had to give me the tape.
00:43State police?
00:45Yeah, there's somebody after me.
00:47Where are you?
00:48There's somebody after me.
00:49Where are you, ma'am?
00:51I don't know. I'm inside a house.
00:53What house?
00:54I don't know. Can you chase where I am?
00:57No, I can't.
00:59Somebody's after me.
01:01Please.
01:02Are you in Suffolk County or Nassau County?
01:05Um, I'm in Long Island.
01:06You heard her say, someone is after me. Three times.
01:11But the police spun it and said, well, she's not rational because how could someone be after her if she's
01:17in the house?
01:17And Shannon's driver comes in a few minutes later and is standing there.
01:21What's the matter? Are you okay?
01:24What are you going to do?
01:26What are you going to do to me?
01:27I don't know.
01:29You're going to kill me?
01:30You're crazy.
01:31Why are you going to kill me?
01:32Come on.
01:33You better come on.
01:34I don't know.
01:35No way.
01:38I know my sister's voice.
01:41I know her panic.
01:43I believe she called 911 to have them there.
01:47Maybe she was unable to speak at the time.
01:49She couldn't talk.
01:52What's the problem?
01:53What's the matter?
01:54What happened?
01:56Hello?
01:58I do believe somebody was out for her.
02:02She doesn't want to leave because she's afraid of what's outside.
02:05She finally leaves.
02:07Then she lets out a blood-curdling scream.
02:18Somebody was after her, just like she said.
02:23You can hear it.
02:25She really thinks she's going to be killed.
02:32And Shannon bolts, runs, knocks on doors, finally ends up at a house of a man named Gus
02:38Coletti.
02:39What's the matter?
02:41Somebody in here?
02:43Huh?
02:45What's the matter?
02:47What are you doing?
02:50What are you doing?
02:51Don't keep talking.
02:52Where are you going?
02:53Where are you going?
02:55What are you going?
02:56And then she runs away from his house.
03:00Something, please.
03:01There's a young girl, about 14 years old, running around here screaming, and there's
03:05some guy trying to follow her.
03:07Knocks on another door.
03:09Some woman is knocking at my door.
03:11What town are you in?
03:12Oak Beach, Ocean Parkway.
03:15She says she's in danger.
03:17And then she disappears, allegedly never to be seen again by anyone.
03:25Oh.
03:28Oh.
03:39Oh.
03:46Oh.
03:47Oh.
03:48Oh.
03:48Oh.
03:49Oh.
03:56This was all a crock from the very beginning.
04:01The police certainly knew about the 911 call,
04:04but the police couldn't describe what had occurred and why.
04:09And the things they kept saying were all falsehoods.
04:11They were all bizarre.
04:14Something was wrong.
04:18And when Shannon was found, I asked for the autopsy report.
04:24Typically what happens is after there's an autopsy that's done,
04:27the medical examiner calls the family in and tells them what they found.
04:31Here, months went by and no medical report.
04:36And we finally got it,
04:38and we went to the medical examiner's meeting on the autopsy.
04:43There were three detectives from Suffolk County Homicide.
04:47What are they doing here?
04:49This is a civil proceeding.
04:53As a medical examiner, I would ask her a question.
04:56If they were really easy, she'd answer them.
04:58But sometimes she would get out of her chair,
05:00go over to the detectives,
05:02whisper together with them, come back and answer the question,
05:04or refuse to answer it.
05:06I've never seen it before or since.
05:10I mean, it was ridiculous.
05:13Somebody frustrated near that investigation,
05:15and it was Burke.
05:19And you say, why Burke?
05:20Well, when we come to know who Burke really was,
05:23as I have very well,
05:25you'll understand exactly why Burke.
05:30We started to hear these stories about Chief Burke.
05:34Burke rose to power
05:36despite a department investigation
05:38early in his career
05:39involving allegations of drugs,
05:42a lost gun,
05:43and a sex worker in his squad car.
05:46Her name was Loretta Rickenbacker,
05:49and I took Loretta's case.
05:51She was charged with some crimes,
05:53and I helped her out.
05:54And from her, I learned a great deal about Burke.
05:57And then from some other sex workers
05:59who called me from all over the country
06:00who had shacked up with Burke.
06:05So you're alleging that these parties
06:08where Burke was at, where you were at...
06:11And how did you characterize
06:12his behavior that night?
06:13Aggressive.
06:14It was more of him grabbing me
06:16in an aggressive manner by my hair
06:18and shoving his, you know,
06:21himself inside of me, choking.
06:25I remember tears, not tears...
06:27He did that uniformly for years.
06:30I mean, nonetheless,
06:30he was promoted all the way to the top.
06:32Were other law enforcement there?
06:36Yeah, there were numerous people there.
06:37I mean...
06:38Drugs?
06:39Yes.
06:43There was a lot of talk about
06:46these sex parties
06:48that he would go to.
06:50Parties with women and drugs.
06:55There were things going on
06:57in that department
06:58that shouldn't have been happening.
07:00But everybody just below him
07:02supported him.
07:03They made sure that everybody below them
07:06supported him.
07:09That's the department
07:10that James Burke had created.
07:13It was like a fraternity.
07:15It's really more of like what it was.
07:17It was like a big frat house.
07:22This is a man who is completely corrupted
07:26by and devoted to sex workers
07:29and in charge of the investigation
07:31of the deaths of sex workers.
07:35This fox is in charge of the hen house?
07:39How could you possibly expect
07:41a fair and honest result?
07:43Nobody in their right mind
07:45would say that,
07:45except the Suffolk County Police Department
07:47as we speak.
07:51Shannon, her manner of death
07:53is still listed as undetermined.
07:55And police had publicly said
07:57that they considered it
07:58to be accidental.
08:00Investigators believe Gilbert
08:01was not murdered
08:02by what cops believe
08:03is the serial killer
08:04that dumped the 10 other sets
08:06of remains at Gilgo Beach.
08:09Was this a cover-up?
08:11I mean, what are they hiding?
08:14Even now, John Ray believes
08:17that Shannon Gilbert
08:18was murdered
08:19by the same person
08:20who murdered
08:21all these other people.
08:24But I'm not sure
08:26that we will ever know
08:28the truth about Shannon Gilbert.
08:30And so that mystery
08:31will continue.
08:39Jimmy, do you have anything
08:41to say about your arrest?
08:43During his 30-year career
08:45in law enforcement,
08:46James Burke was haunted
08:47by internal affairs investigations.
08:50Today, the chief's career
08:50came to a swift
08:51and a sudden end,
08:53but concerns of wrongdoing
08:54still remain.
09:00Chief James Burke
09:01assaulted a man
09:02while in custody.
09:04His name was Christopher Loeb.
09:06Christopher Loeb
09:07was out robbing cars
09:09in the certain area
09:10of Long Island.
09:12And he was going into the cars
09:13and taking things out.
09:14And all of a sudden,
09:16he gets to a car
09:17in a driveway
09:18and he goes in
09:20and he finds a duffel bag.
09:24He opens up the bag
09:27and he finds gun belt,
09:30magazines, ammunition,
09:32and sex toys and porn.
09:36And it turned out
09:38it was Burke's
09:39department-issued vehicle.
09:42When Chief Burke
09:43found out about this,
09:45Burke had officers
09:47pick up Christopher Loeb,
09:48bring him to the precinct,
09:50and beat him up.
09:51Every time I asked
09:52for a lawyer,
09:53I got hit again,
09:54I got hit again,
09:54I got choked,
09:55I got choked,
09:55I got punched,
09:56I got slapped,
09:57I got kicked.
09:58And so that was really
10:00what took James Burke down.
10:04Because Christopher Loeb
10:05filed a civil rights complaint.
10:07And Burke was convicted.
10:09Today, the Suffolk County
10:10police chief stepped down.
10:12Burke was also overseeing
10:14the Gilgo Beach
10:15serial killer investigation.
10:17Numerous law enforcement officials
10:18familiar with the case
10:20say Burke blocked the FBI
10:22from investigating.
10:24At the time,
10:25we all hoped
10:26this would be a turning point
10:27for the Gilgo case.
10:29What do I need to know
10:30about Gilgo Beach
10:32and now the renewed calls
10:33of this investigation
10:34and trying to find
10:36the killer?
10:37But after James Burke,
10:39so many years went by.
10:51It kind of got to a point
10:53in the local media
10:54where it almost became laughable
10:57because it's like,
10:58what is going on
11:00with this case?
11:00It has been going on
11:01for so long.
11:02And then, you know,
11:04another person comes in
11:05and says we're going
11:05to do something
11:06and I think everybody
11:07tried to keep up hope
11:08this whole time.
11:09The newly appointed
11:10Suffolk police commissioner
11:11announcing a new
11:12closer partnership
11:14with the FBI.
11:15Today, upon our request,
11:17they're going to take
11:18a more active
11:18and prominent role.
11:19The Suffolk County police,
11:21the Suffolk County
11:22District Attorney's office,
11:23the FBI,
11:24and all of our
11:25law enforcement partners
11:26are working tirelessly
11:28to solve these cases.
11:32Look, I try to give police,
11:34police do a great job,
11:36they have a hard job,
11:37but when you hear
11:39over and over,
11:40it's an active
11:40and ongoing investigation.
11:42It's an active
11:43and ongoing investigation.
11:46It's an active
11:46and ongoing investigation.
11:48There's only so long
11:49that you can deal with that.
11:51And according to Ila,
11:53this has been
11:53a flawed investigation.
11:54I don't understand it.
11:56The case has gone cold.
11:57We know it's gone cold.
11:58They can tell us
11:59what they want to tell us.
12:00We know different.
12:02If it was one
12:02of their own children,
12:04this case would have
12:05been solved.
12:06They need to step up
12:07to the plate
12:08and realize
12:08these are human beings.
12:10It doesn't matter
12:11what their profession is.
12:13They're still you and me.
12:16We had no clue
12:17what would happen to her.
12:21When the new officer
12:22took over
12:23for Suffolk County,
12:24he said there were
12:25two guys working
12:26on the case
12:27and that's all
12:28they worked on.
12:30I mean,
12:31it's hard to believe
12:32that just two men
12:33are working on this case.
12:36What's that?
12:37That's nothing.
12:40You know,
12:41law enforcement
12:41has an incredible duty
12:44to listen to people
12:46and to take them seriously
12:47and to do their due diligence.
12:49And that wasn't done here.
12:51And these families lived
12:53in that nightmare
12:54for all those years.
12:57These families
12:59held out hope
13:00that police
13:02would find
13:02the man
13:03who did this.
13:06And some of them
13:08died
13:09without ever knowing.
13:11A grisly murder
13:12for a family
13:13already torn apart
13:14by tragedy.
13:15The mother
13:15of Gilgo Beach
13:16victim Shannon Gilbert
13:17found stabbed to death
13:18inside her home.
13:19The murder scene
13:20is a grim little
13:21first floor apartment
13:22in upstate Ellenville,
13:23the place where police
13:24found 52-year-old
13:25Mary Gilbert's body
13:26on Saturday.
13:27The mother
13:28of a murdered woman
13:29now murdered herself.
13:31Uh, do you know
13:32why you're here?
13:33I murdered her.
13:34Excuse me?
13:35I murdered my mother.
13:36You murdered your mother.
13:37Okay.
13:39Mary Gilbert,
13:40Shannon Gilbert's mother.
13:42She was killed
13:43by her other daughter,
13:45Sarah,
13:46who was going through
13:48a psychotic break
13:49at the time.
13:51What's going on, Sarah?
13:52I was hearing braces.
13:54What were they saying?
13:56To kill my mom.
13:57Mm-hmm.
13:58You okay?
13:59She's dead.
14:00She's dead.
14:01She's dead?
14:01Yeah.
14:02Somebody's coming
14:02and I'll be seeing you.
14:07She's...
14:07Who is it?
14:08It's her mother.
14:10Oh, my God.
14:14Here was the one voice
14:15of Shannon Gilbert
14:17that we had,
14:19and then it was gone.
14:21All right, go, go, go!
14:32All these years pass.
14:35These victims,
14:36their souls,
14:38have to live in that
14:39just horrible place
14:41because no one's listening
14:42and no one's doing
14:43anything about it.
14:44That's what I don't...
14:44I'm left with that thought.
14:49Maybe they were thinking
14:50he's going to get caught.
14:52They're going to get him
14:53for what he's doing to me.
14:57There's no way
14:58that this is going
14:58to happen to me
14:59and they're not going
15:00to catch this guy
15:00for what he's doing.
15:03But for so many years,
15:05they didn't.
15:07Their kids had to grow up
15:08without them.
15:09Their families had to wonder
15:10what happened to them.
15:12It's not right.
15:22The case goes cold.
15:24Just absolutely nothing
15:26happening with it
15:27as far as the public can see.
15:31And then suddenly,
15:33everything changes.
15:43I was born and raised
15:44in Suffolk County.
15:46I still live here.
15:51As a prosecutor,
15:53I've done political corruption cases,
15:56Colombian drug cartel cases.
15:57I've done MS-13 cases,
16:01white collar cases.
16:03But the interesting aspect
16:06of Suffolk County
16:07is we have this cold case
16:09on Gilgal Beach
16:10that have gone unsolved.
16:14Suffolk County Police
16:15announced a new effort
16:16to put together
16:17a task force
16:18to solve one of Long Island's
16:19most notorious criminal cases.
16:22They're bringing together
16:23what they're calling
16:23a dream team of detectives
16:25to take a fresh look
16:26at this cold case.
16:31We're playing catch-up.
16:35That's the latest word
16:36from Suffolk County Police
16:37tonight confirming
16:38three more sets
16:39of human remains
16:40were discovered
16:41during a methodical search
16:42near Gilgal Beach
16:44where the body count
16:45just keeps on rising
16:46and the grisly mystery
16:47just deepens
16:48as police excavate
16:50an apparent serial killer's
16:51dumping ground.
16:53To Melissa,
16:54a special angel
16:56on a very special occasion,
16:59an angel comes into our lives.
17:06My career pointed
17:08to all of this.
17:09Trying to prevent
17:10bad things from happening
17:12in the county
17:13that you grew up in.
17:16I interviewed Ray Tierney
17:18before he got into office.
17:19It was also the 10-year
17:21anniversary of Gilgal.
17:22And I sat down with him
17:23and I said,
17:23what is your number one?
17:24And he said,
17:25one of my top priorities
17:26is getting back to Gilgal.
17:28A district attorney
17:29is speaking exclusively
17:30with Long Island reporter
17:31Kristen Thorne
17:32about taking a fresh look
17:34at the case.
17:34I've heard everything.
17:35I've heard all the names.
17:37I know all of those things.
17:38Incoming Suffolk County
17:39district attorney
17:40Ray Tierney
17:40says he isn't in the business
17:42of guessing.
17:42He wants evidence
17:44and he plans to find it
17:45by taking a fresh look
17:46at the case.
17:48That was a big move.
17:50That was important.
17:51Finally,
17:52we're getting some progress.
17:56You know,
17:57there was a fair amount
17:57of politics involved
17:59in this prior to myself
18:01getting involved.
18:02And, you know,
18:03I will say
18:04we were able
18:05to successfully eliminate
18:06that political angle
18:09and keep the case
18:11about the case
18:12and only investigators involved.
18:15I'm going to sit down
18:16with the new guys
18:17to make sure
18:18that everything
18:18that they've done
18:19is, has,
18:20and so then I could
18:21get off blood thin.
18:22It's one of those things
18:23where the longer you're on it,
18:24the worse it gets.
18:27There was not
18:28a coherent investigation.
18:31There was a lot of instances
18:32where the leadership
18:33was not focused
18:35upon the right things.
18:38The establishment
18:39of the task force
18:40was something that
18:41had been known
18:42amongst investigators
18:43as being
18:43an absolute necessity.
18:47D.A. Tierney
18:47had a stomach to do it.
18:50The momentum
18:51that he was able
18:51to build
18:52in a year period
18:53is impressive.
18:57With regard to cold cases,
18:58you have to really start
18:59from the very beginning
19:00and follow the evidence
19:01wherever the evidence leads.
19:02So the first thing
19:03we wanted to do
19:04is we wanted to get
19:05the FBI in the room.
19:07In cases like this,
19:09the FBI offered
19:11investigative genetic genealogy,
19:12specifically to identify
19:14the victims.
19:16We had six unidentified
19:18murder victims.
19:20Five, Jane Doe's,
19:22one, John Doe.
19:25And the Gilgo Four,
19:27they're all identified.
19:28So that's where the investigation
19:30has focused.
19:34The Gilgo Four,
19:35the manner of death
19:37was very similar.
19:40The woods in Gilgo Beach
19:42is insanely thick.
19:44It would take you
19:4545 minutes
19:46to walk a couple of feet
19:47through the woods.
19:48It's that thick.
19:50So rather than bury a body,
19:52the perpetrator
19:54would go into Gilgo Beach
19:56and just ease the bodies
19:57into the overgrown woods
20:00covered with camouflage burlap.
20:03That way,
20:04no one's going to see it.
20:07What it tells me is
20:09whoever dumped those bodies
20:10really knew that area well.
20:16Everybody had a little
20:18piece of evidence.
20:19Suffolk County PD had a piece
20:21of it.
20:21The Suffolk County DA's office
20:22had a piece of it.
20:24So the next thing we did
20:25was we digitalized
20:26the evidence,
20:27so make it searchable
20:28for everyone.
20:40And we found
20:42critically important
20:43phone work
20:43that was done 2012.
20:46With that,
20:47we were able to re-examine
20:48all of the evidence
20:49that was there.
20:53And we saw
20:54that the killer
20:56used four separate
20:57burner phones
20:58to lure
20:59another individual out
21:00so that person
21:01could be killed.
21:03We called it
21:04the kill phone.
21:14Burner phones
21:15and the cell tower data
21:16was absolutely
21:18crucial evidence.
21:20September 2nd,
21:222010,
21:22the burner cell
21:23contacted Amber Costello's phone.
21:26Cell site location
21:27for that call
21:28was Massapequa Park
21:31in Long Island.
21:40The night pepper
21:41disappears.
21:43She fields a call,
21:44she gets off the phone,
21:46and she's giddy,
21:47you know,
21:48she's like,
21:48uh,
21:49he offered 2,500 bucks,
21:50and I'm like,
21:51it just doesn't seem right.
21:52I'm like, you know,
21:52something seems off.
21:53Like, who would offer you
21:54that kind of money?
21:55I'm like,
21:55for an overnight,
21:56you know,
21:57this and that,
21:57and it just didn't seem right.
21:59But anyway,
21:59she was,
22:00you know,
22:00she was happy,
22:01so I didn't,
22:02you know,
22:02I was,
22:03whatever.
22:09Thereafter,
22:11at 1117,
22:13the kill phone
22:13began to move
22:15from Massapequa Park
22:17to West Babylon,
22:20where Amber Costello lived.
22:23At 1205,
22:25that kill phone
22:26contacted Amber Costello.
22:30She got a second call.
22:34For some strange reason,
22:36whatever she was told,
22:39she left her phone,
22:43she left her purse,
22:44and just left with the clothes
22:45on her back.
22:48Everything was wrong.
22:50The guy,
22:51he only wanted to pick her up
22:53around the block.
22:54She's like,
22:55it's good.
22:55She's like,
22:56you know,
22:56I talked to him.
22:58That was it, man.
22:59You know,
23:00when she got to the edge
23:01of the property.
23:04And that was it.
23:09And then,
23:11the kill phone
23:12moved back
23:13to Massapequa Park.
23:19When I got up,
23:21I went and got her phone.
23:23Numbers were there.
23:24Like, you know,
23:24I was like,
23:25oh, shit.
23:25I'm like,
23:25you know,
23:25so I called it back.
23:27It rung.
23:29Someone picked up
23:30and hung up.
23:31Called it back again.
23:32It rung.
23:33Went to voicemail.
23:34Third time,
23:35I called it back.
23:36It was done.
23:36It was dead.
23:37The phone was off,
23:38you know.
23:41Never saw her again.
23:47He would use the kill phone
23:48once and discard it.
23:50Purchase the second kill phone,
23:52discard it,
23:53and so on.
24:00The authorities were using
24:01the cell phone history
24:03of the victims
24:03to try to identify
24:04the perpetrator.
24:07At the time,
24:08Melissa was missing.
24:10He was calling
24:11Melissa's younger sister
24:13using Melissa's cell phone.
24:16He actively stalked her.
24:22The cell phone analysis
24:24would be crucial
24:26to linking
24:26the suspect
24:27to the victims.
24:30The sister of one
24:31of the victims
24:31says she has gotten
24:32a half a dozen
24:33crude phone calls
24:34from an unidentified man
24:36using Bartholomew's
24:37own cell phone.
24:38It's nothing
24:39that we can say
24:40on the air.
24:40Well, that wasn't nice.
24:41It wasn't nice.
24:43At this point,
24:44we had no idea
24:45where she was.
24:47We didn't know
24:47if she was alive or dead.
24:54I was at my cousin's house.
24:58All of a sudden,
24:59my phone rings
25:00and it says Melissa.
25:05There's a man
25:06on the other line.
25:07It's not my sister.
25:07And I'm thinking
25:08maybe somebody
25:08found her phone
25:09or found her,
25:12knows where she is.
25:15And I was just
25:16kind of asking questions.
25:19I was waiting
25:20for the answers.
25:22She just called her a whore.
25:26He knew some things
25:27about me,
25:28so obviously he had
25:29her phone,
25:29so there was probably
25:30pictures in it.
25:34There was one time
25:35I grabbed the phone
25:37and the guy heard
25:38my voice
25:39and hung right up
25:40on me.
25:41And then a day
25:42or so later,
25:43he called Amanda's
25:44phone back.
25:46He stated that
25:47she was dead.
25:51And I had to tell
25:52my mother.
25:59Calls probably
26:00last between
26:01two and three months.
26:05Whoever did this,
26:07he was taking
26:08a lot of risks.
26:11And continuing
26:12to torture
26:13this family
26:15was part of that.
26:16And it's really sick.
26:18I mean,
26:18it's really disgusting.
26:22He was always calm.
26:24It was like
26:25he had everything
26:26planned out
26:27what he wanted
26:28to say to her.
26:29And like the last phone call,
26:31he had said,
26:31you know,
26:32maybe I'll come
26:33tell you
26:33where her body is.
26:38This is during
26:39that time
26:39after Melissa
26:40was missing.
26:43And her family
26:44was actively
26:44searching for her.
26:47A cell tower ping
26:48placed Melissa's phone
26:49in Midtown Manhattan
26:50at that time.
26:52Other calls
26:53were placed
26:53following that
26:54from the cell tower
26:55located in Long Island.
27:05So now,
27:06we knew
27:07the killer
27:08was in the
27:08Massapeco Park area
27:10as well as
27:10the Midtown Manhattan area.
27:16Suffolk County
27:17is
27:18its commuter
27:19life.
27:2135 miles
27:23east
27:23of New York City.
27:26Given the phone
27:27activity,
27:28you're more than likely
27:29dealing with a person
27:30who
27:32lived in Suffolk County,
27:34worked in the city.
27:35Very white-collar.
27:37A lot of cops,
27:38firefighters,
27:39teachers.
27:41There is someone
27:42out there
27:42killing people.
27:44Torturing?
27:45Dismembering?
27:49But
27:50in a county
27:51of 1.6 million
27:52people,
27:53you know,
27:54it's very difficult
27:55to try
27:56to identify
27:57him.
28:06We need
28:08a new perspective.
28:09Nothing in this world
28:10is great
28:11to follow me.
28:12Nothing in this world
28:14is great.
28:14Nothing in this world
28:16is great.
28:17We're bringing in
28:18the state police
28:18for the first time.
28:21The police commissioner
28:22had come to us
28:23and asked us
28:24to join the task force.
28:27Different eyes,
28:28different people looking.
28:30We all see things
28:31differently.
28:32You know,
28:32my analogy would be
28:33if we all looked
28:34out this window
28:34right now
28:35and I told you
28:36to look out there
28:37for a minute
28:37and then write down
28:38everything you see,
28:39there would likely
28:40be five things
28:41things on there
28:41that you saw clearly
28:42I never saw.
28:45And that's the benefit
28:46of having new people,
28:47different agencies.
28:49There was numerous people
28:51from which we could
28:52have chosen from,
28:53but we ultimately
28:54decided on one individual
28:55and that was
28:56Investigator Tiffany Attai.
28:59She was in the
29:00Troop L,
29:01Long Island
29:02Major Crimes Unit.
29:04This is a unit
29:05where the members
29:06assigned to this unit
29:08are some of our
29:09more experienced
29:10investigators.
29:15and you are looking
29:16for that needle
29:18in the haystack.
29:20So much different
29:21evidence
29:22and you're trying
29:22to figure out a way
29:23of how does this
29:25all fit together.
29:27But then,
29:29in that time
29:30of doing a deep dive,
29:33there were a couple
29:34of things
29:34in those case files
29:36that jumped out
29:37at her.
29:43One state trooper
29:45that was looking through
29:47and saw this report
29:48from years ago
29:50and he said,
29:51wait a second.
29:52It's a woman actually.
29:53Oh, was it a woman?
29:54Oh my gosh.
29:55No doubt
29:55because, you know.
29:56I mean, hello.
29:57Hello.
29:58The attention to detail.
29:59Hello.
30:02This report says
30:04before Amber Costello
30:06disappeared,
30:06she was with another man,
30:08her friend.
30:11and he saw
30:12the potential suspect.
30:16This was all reported
30:17to police
30:18at that time.
30:23This
30:24is my statement
30:26to whatever.
30:27In 2010,
30:29it's the first contact
30:30I had with police.
30:32When Amber disappeared,
30:36I told them everything.
30:44this is what I said
30:45to the police
30:48that one time
30:48she just got a call
30:51probably like a month
30:52before she went missing.
30:53You know what I mean?
30:54It was all set up
30:55through Backpage.
30:57So I was like,
30:58listen,
30:58I'm going to go get,
30:58you know,
30:59go get some pizza,
31:00went up the block,
31:01ordered a pie
31:04and she calls
31:05and I'm like,
31:06what's the matter?
31:06She's like,
31:06you know,
31:06you got to get back here.
31:07She's like,
31:08this fucking guy,
31:08you know,
31:08he started grabbing,
31:09pulling on me,
31:10you know,
31:12get to the house
31:12and come running
31:13in the house
31:15and there's this giant
31:17just standing
31:18in the living room, bro.
31:24six foot four
31:25to six foot six
31:26in height,
31:27mid-40s,
31:29bushy hair,
31:3070s style glasses,
31:32describing the police
31:33appearing like an ogre.
31:35You know,
31:36just a big monster
31:37of a dude
31:38with just this
31:39look on his face
31:41like straight killers have.
31:44So I'm like,
31:45you know,
31:46you got to go.
31:48So he was leaving
31:51the entire time.
31:53He never took his eyes
31:54off Amber
31:54the entire time
31:55and just staring at her.
31:59He just fixated
32:01on her the whole time.
32:03I was like,
32:03something's wrong
32:04with this dude.
32:09He was walking
32:10to his car,
32:11the avalanche.
32:13Furthermore,
32:14a witness noticed
32:15the Chevy avalanche
32:16parked in the driveway
32:17of the driveway
32:18of the residence.
32:20Twelve years ago,
32:21I said,
32:22I'm like,
32:22the one guy
32:23who stands out
32:23is this dude
32:24with this green avalanche,
32:26you know?
32:32You know how
32:32the way the back
32:33comes down,
32:34sweeping triangle piece
32:35and whatnot?
32:38No other truck
32:38looks like that.
32:42back in 2012,
32:44the FBI did some
32:45sophisticated analysis
32:46using their cast team
32:47and they narrowed down
32:49a box.
32:50The box correlated
32:51to 200 residences
32:52within Massapequa Park
32:54where the cell phone calls
32:55could have been placed.
32:59and New York State Trooper
33:01Tiffany Attai,
33:03when she evaluated
33:04that FBI data
33:05against witness statements,
33:07she isolated a suspect
33:10based on that suspect's
33:12ownership
33:13of a green Chevy avalanche.
33:17One name stood out.
33:19The green Chevy avalanche,
33:21that was it.
33:22And then everything
33:22just started to
33:24So we got that information
33:25and then we took
33:26that information
33:27and we compared it
33:28to the Massapequa Park area.
33:34And it wasn't long
33:36after that,
33:38we found
33:39the Chevy avalanche.
33:45It was in March of 2022.
33:48Finally, we have
33:49a person of interest.
33:52This person had never
33:53been mentioned
33:54or looked at
33:55or identified prior to that.
33:59The question
34:01that went unanswered
34:02for over a decade,
34:06investigator Attai
34:07was able to provide
34:08the answer.
34:10And it also gave
34:11the task force
34:13for the first time
34:14in over a decade
34:15a clear cut direction.
34:18We had our first task force
34:19meeting February 1st.
34:21of 2022.
34:22Six weeks later,
34:23March 14th,
34:24we identified this suspect.
34:37I'll never forget it
34:38because when you hear a name,
34:40the first thing
34:40you want to do
34:41is you're looking
34:42to try to eliminate.
34:44Well, it can't be this person
34:45because of whatever reason.
34:47And the more we looked into it,
34:49the more it fit.
34:50And very quickly,
34:51what started to happen
34:52was a picture
34:53started to be painted.
34:55That picture became clearer
34:56and clearer
34:57and clearer.
35:00The suspect
35:01was an architect,
35:02worked in the city.
35:05Not only did he live
35:06in Massapequa Park,
35:07he worked in the Midtown Manhattan.
35:116'4", 6'5",
35:13dark hair.
35:20And we confirmed
35:22that he had the Chevy Avalanche.
35:27And his name
35:30was Rex Heuermann.
35:36Bam!
35:37We've got him.
35:45Hello, I'm Antoine.
35:47Today on interview,
35:48Rex Heuermann,
35:49owner of RH Consultant,
35:51a department
35:52of building facilitator.
35:53Let's go meet him.
35:55Rex!
35:56Hello!
35:56How are you doing?
35:57Good to see you.
35:58Likewise,
35:58I hope you don't mind
35:59I brought my assistant with me,
36:01Norman.
36:01Hello, Norman.
36:03I see it's raining out.
36:04Yes, it's raining.
36:06Yes, yes, please.
36:07I know Mother Nature
36:08is not cooperating today.
36:10To say the least,
36:11I'll tell you that.
36:12So, tell us,
36:13you know,
36:14who you are.
36:14Rex Heuermann.
36:15I'm an architect.
36:17I'm an architectural consultant.
36:18I'm a troubleshooter.
36:20Born and raised
36:21on Long Island.
36:22Okay.
36:22Been working in Manhattan
36:24since 1987.
36:25Oh, wow.
36:26Very long time.
36:28Okay.
36:56Come on.
37:01Let's go.
37:02Go.
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