The Long Island Ripper

[The Rookie Detective]

Yes, having checked my facts the Massapequa call was by Melissa to her voicemail.

But there is still that connection. She was there because she was meeting the killer, and checking voicemail is something you do to pass time while you're waiting.

But according to this link;
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/arc.../t-159991.html
One of the calls was indeed linked to Massapequa, as well as her voicemail checking.

So it seems she was in Massapequa on 9th July, then again on 12th July when she vanished. Both times she checked her voicemail while waiting for her client. And if one of the killer's calls did come from Massapequa it's possible he lives or works nearby.

Bingo DP

Detective work at its finest

I knew nothing whatsoever of this case and had never heard of it until yesterday when reading the first few pages of this thread.

I was thinking... the killer must live or work in Massapequa; the location from which the alleged victim had called from on 2 separate occasions.


After 10 minutes of reading this case cold; I believed that Massapequa was the key (based on this excellent thread)

And it would appear that is correct.

What took years of dodgy and inept police investigation was achieved in the same time as it took to drink my tea.

Fine work from Dark Passenger and Curious; a most excellent thread indeed.



RD

[The Rookie Detective]

So, the killer made a call from Massapequa? then from very busy areas in Manhattan so that even though the authorities got security surveillance tapes there were too many people on the phone to be able to narrow it down?

So, question No. 1:

Did the newspapers print that Melissa called from Massapequa? And the killer perhaps then went there to make a call because he read the papers and knew she had called from there? Or did he pick her up there and returned there for the call?

I'm guessing he does not live there. I think he is too savvy.

The great part is, though, that the authorities do have pictures of people on telephones. So, when they get suspects, they can check to see if that person is on one of the security tapes from around Times Square or Madison Square Garden or wherever the calls originated.

Those security cameras might eventually seal the killer's doom, even though right now the authorities say that with nearly 1,000 people on the phone it is no help.

Somehow, I wonder if the trip to the event in New Jersey has not narrowed the suspects down enough that they know who, but just don't have the evidence for an arrest and conviction yet? Perhaps the killer has enough clout that they are going to have all their I's dotted and T's crossed before making a move.

Officially, the authorities are saying the New Jersey murders are no connection, but I wonder . . . .

Dark Passenger, why do you think the killer called only Melissa's sister and doesn't appear to have used the other victims' phones?

Not as savvy as he thought it would seem.

The proven link between Massapequa and the centre of NYC, from where the dodgy calls to the victim's sister were traced meant that the killer must have had a physical connection to both locations.

A "seasonal" killer would signify a married man; or one with family commitments.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing of course, but it shouldn't have taken so long to find him based on the spectrum of info they had on the killer.


One of the biggest hindrances in a case like this, is when the police do not approach things in the correct way and lack the competency and integrity to push it through.

The same could likely apply to the JTR case as a whole.




RD

[curious]

Well, I found a good laugh in my post:
"I'm guessing he does not live there. I think he is too savvy." "there" was Massapequa, so clearly my crystal ball was not working that day. It does raise the question though: Did the taskforce go back to those photos once they had Rex Heuermann in their sights and look for him?

[bonestrewn]

Not sure if anyone is still following this case or thread...

A new documentary was recently released (available on Peacock in the US) called "The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets." It features up-to-date info on the case, including the 7 women Heuermann is charged with killing, as well as interviews with his wife and his daughter.

I grew up and live on Long Island, and have family in the area where Heuermann lived. The big landmarks of the case are very well known to me as I've also had job roles where I traveled by commuter rail into Midtown. There's something weirdly "intimate" about seeing LI dissected and talked about, especially because it seems most people not from the area don't really understand Long Island (one of the talking heads in the documentary referred to it as an "isolated island"--the boros of Queens and Brooklyn are ON Long Island! LOL!).

Does anyone have thoughts or opinions on the latest evidence and items of interest?

The big one for me, shown in the documentary I mention, was the discovery on Heuermann's computer of a deleted file called "HK", which they believed stood for "Hunt/Kill," where he laid out very plainly a step-by-step plan for conducting murders, including preliminary sweeps of the dump site, the equipment he would need for the murders, and how to treat the bodies after death (removing marks of torture, removing identifying tattoos). This document apparently related to his earlier kills, with his MO changing as he got older.

They also found his wife's and daughter's hairs on different victims, which they tied to them solidly with nuclear DNA. The suggestion is Heuermann/his implements picked up the hairs from the family home and then distributed them onto the bodies accidentally. I have a strong impression that the older he got and the more the investigation into his crimes failed, the sloppier Heuermann became.

[Pcdunn]

Very interesting. Thanks for the heads up on the documentary; Bonestrewn.

[curious]

Yes, I'm still watching this case as it seems one of the biggest mysteries of our time. So glad he's behind bars. I amd eagerly watching for the judge's ruling on the DNA taken from the hair without the roots as it is fairly new science and New York State seems to be conservative in the legal area. Since I'm so against the state convicting innocent people, I don't think being conservative in accepting the latest discoveries is a bad thing. Plus, from what we've seen so far, it appears the DA has a strong enough case without the DNA evidence.

[Abby Normal]

ive been following this case too. huermann did it. they have cell phone records linking him to victims, his car matches a witness description, and most importantly dna match.

oh and his wife and family had no clue. they overwhelmingly dont in cases like this.