Long Island Serial Killer Article

May 29, 2011  A Serial Killer in Common Five prostitutes disappear. Bodies turn up on a beach. Now the families of the victims have formed a kind of sisterhood.

First Lost, Then Murdered. Melissa Barthelemy was brought up in Buffalo s Kensington-Bailey neighborhood a neglected part of town that long ago housed.

The Long Island serial killer also referred to by media sources as the Gilgo Beach Killer or the Craigslist Ripper is an unidentified suspected American serial killer who is believed to have murdered 10 to 17 people associated with the sex trade over a period of nearly 20 years and dumped their bodies along the Ocean Parkway, near the remote Long Island beach towns of Gilgo Beach and Oak Beach in Suffolk County and the area of Jones Beach State Park in Nassau County.

The remains of four victims were found in December 2010, while six more sets of remains were found in March and April 2011. 1 2 3 Police believe that the latest sets of remains predate the four bodies found in December 2010. 4

On May 9, 2011, authorities surmised that two of the newest sets of remains might be the work of a second killer. 5 On November 29, 2011, however, the police announced that they believe that one person is responsible for all 10 deaths and that they do not believe that the case of Shannan Gilbert see below is related. 6 It is clear that the area in and around Gilgo Beach has been used to discard human remains for some period of time, said Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota. 7

Contents

1 Police investigation

2 Identity of the killer

3 Victims

3.1 Bodies discovered in December 2010

3.1.1 Identified

3.2 Remains discovered in March and April 2011

3.2.1 Identified

3.2.2 Unidentified

3.3 Other possible victims

4 References

5 External links

Police investigation edit

Police were initially searching for Shannan Gilbert, a 24-year-old woman working as an escort 8 9 from New Jersey who was reported missing in May 2010. She was last seen in the area after she ran from, rather than to, her driver, Michael Pak, 10 who was waiting for her outside a client s house in nearby Oak Beach. 10

Exit for Robert Moses Causeway on the Ocean Parkway, near where the first body was found.

In December 2010, a police officer and his dog on a routine training exercise discovered the first body – the skeletal remains of a woman in a nearly disintegrated burlap sack. 11 This discovery led to three more bodies being found two days later in the same area on the north side of the Ocean Parkway. Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer said Four bodies found in the same location pretty much speaks for itself. It s more than a coincidence. We could have a serial killer. 12 A few months later, in late March and early April 2011, four more bodies were discovered in another area off the parkway. Suffolk Police expanded the search area up to the Nassau County border, looking for more victims. 13

On April 6, 2011, Detective Lt. Kevin Smith of the Nassau County Police Department said that his office will further explore and investigate any criminal activity which may be in close proximity to the recently discovered human remains found in Suffolk. Smith also said that Nassau Police will be coordinating with Suffolk County and New York State Police on the investigation. 14 Five days later, the search for more bodies began in Nassau County. Local media reported that an additional set of partial human remains was found, as well as a separate skull, bringing the potential total number of victims found since December to ten. 15 On April 22, 2011, two human teeth were found about a foot from the skull. 16 On June 16, 2011, Suffolk County police raised the reward from 5,000 to 25,000 the largest ever offered in the county s history for information leading to an arrest in the Long Island murders. 17

On September 20, 2011, police released composite sketches of two of the unidentified victims whose remains were found in March and April 2011 an Asian male and Jane Doe No. 6, as well as photos of jewelry found on the remains of a female toddler and her mother, found on April 4 and 11, 2011, respectively. 18 The toddler s mother was also revealed as one of the sets of remains found in Nassau County on April 11. 18 Also on September 20, police revealed that the second set of remains found in Nassau County on April 11, 2011, matched two legs that were found in a garbage bag that had washed up on Fire Island in 1996. 18 19 As of September 22, 2011 update, the police had received over 1,200 tips via text, email and phone since the beginning of the investigation. 19

On November 29, 2011, police announced that they believe one person is responsible for all 10 murders, and that the person is almost certainly from Long Island. 20

On December 13, 2011, the remains of Shannan Gilbert were found in a marsh about half a mile from where she disappeared, and a week after some of her clothes and belongings were found in the vicinity. Police believe that Shannan accidentally drowned after stumbling into a swamp, a view not shared by her mother. She had last been seen banging on a resident s door and screaming for help before running off into the night. A panicked 911 call from Gilbert that night revealed her saying that they were going to kill her. 21

Identity of the killer edit

There has been much speculation in the media concerning the identity of the killer, currently known as Unsub – unknown subject. 22 It has been suggested that the serial killer is most likely a white male in his mid-20s to mid-40s who is very familiar with the South Shore of Long Island and who has access to burlap sacks which he uses to contain the bodies in. 22 He may have a detailed knowledge of law enforcement techniques which have thus far helped him avoid detection, and perhaps even ties to law enforcement. 22 23

Some have speculated that serial killer and former Long Island resident Joel Rifkin may have been responsible for some of the older remains found in March and April 2011, as four of the victims bodies were never found. 24 In an April 2011 prison interview with Newsday, Rifkin denied having anything to do with recently discovered remains. 24

Victims edit

Bodies discovered in December 2010 edit

Of the ten bodies or sets of remains found since late 2010, the four discovered in December 2010 have been identified as missing prostitutes who all advertised their services on Craigslist. They had all been strangled and their bodies wrapped in burlap sacks before being dumped along Gilgo Beach. 25 All are believed to have been killed elsewhere.

Identified edit

Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, of Norwich, Connecticut, was a prostitute who advertised her services online. Maureen, who was only four feet eleven inches tall and one hundred five pounds, went to Long Island, New York, to spend the day in New York City and was never seen again. 26 Maureen, a struggling mother, escorted off of Craigslist to pay the mortgage on her house, but after successfully leaving the sex industry for seven months Maureen eventually returned to pay her bills after receiving an eviction notice. 27 She was last seen on July 9, 2007, when she left Norwich for New York City. 28 Her body was found in December 2010. 29

Melissa Barthelemy, 24, of Erie County, New York, went missing on July 10, 2009. She had been living in the Bronx and working as an escort through Craigslist. 30 On the night she went missing, she met with a client, deposited 900 in her bank account and attempted to call an old boyfriend, but did not get through. Beginning one week after her disappearance, and lasting for five weeks, her teenage sister, Amanda, received a series of vulgar, mocking and insulting calls from someone who may have been the killer, using her sister s cell phone. 31

Megan Waterman, 22, of South Portland, Maine, went missing on June 6, 2010, after placing advertisements on Craigslist as an escort; the day before she had told her 20-year-old boyfriend that she was going out and would call him later. At the time of her disappearance, she was staying at a motel in Hauppauge, NY, 15 miles northeast of Gilgo Beach. Her body was also recovered in December 2010. 32

Amber Lynn Costello, 27, of North Babylon, New York, a town ten miles north of Gilgo Beach. She was a prostitute and a heroin user, and went missing on September 2, 2010. 32 On the night she disappeared, she went to meet a stranger who had called her several times and offered her 1,500 for her services. 33 As of 2012 Costello s sister and fellow prostitute, Kimberly Overstreet, has vowed to use the same Craigslist booking system as her sister in an effort to lure the killer. 34

Remains discovered in March and April 2011 edit

The four sets of remains discovered on March 29 and April 4 were all within two miles and to the east of those found in December. They included two women, a man, and a toddler. 5 A skull and a partial set of remains were found on April 11 after the search expanded into Nassau County. 35 They were found about one mile apart, approximately five miles west of those found in December. 36

Jessica Taylor, 20, most recently of Manhattan, went missing in July 2003. On July 26, 2003, her naked torso, chopped in pieces and missing its head and hands, was discovered 45 miles east of Gilgo Beach in Manorville, New York; 37 these remains were identified by DNA analysis later that year. 38 On May 9, 2011, it was reported that the remains of a skull, a pair of hands and a forearm found on March 29 at Gilgo belonged to Taylor. 39 40 She had worked in Washington, D.C., and Manhattan as a prostitute. 5 41 The remains of Jane Doe No. 6 were also found both in Manorville torso and on Gilgo beach head, hands and foot. 42

Unidentified edit

Jane Doe No. 6 : A human head, right foot and hands found on April 4, were determined to have belonged to an unidentified victim, the rest of whose body was found on November 19, 2000, in the same part of Manorville where most of Jessica Taylor s remains were discovered. The dismembered remains of Jessica Taylor and Jane Doe No. 6 were both disposed of in a similar manner and in the same town, suggesting a link. In September 2011, police released a composite sketch of Jane Doe No. 6: she was about 5 2 and was between 18 and 35 years old. It is likely that she worked as a prostitute. 18

John Doe : Also discovered on April 4 at Gilgo Beach, very close to where the first four were discovered in December 2010, was the body of what appeared to be a young Asian male who died from blunt-force trauma. 5 43 In September 2011, Police released a composite sketch of the victim and stated that he had likely been working as a prostitute and was wearing women s clothes at the time of his death. 18 He was between 17 and 23 years of age, 5 6 in height, and missing four teeth; he had been dead for between five to 10 years. 18

Baby Doe: The third body found on April 4, about 250 feet away from Jane Doe No. 6, was that of a female toddler between 16 and 24 months of age. 44 The body wrapped in a blanket and showed no visible signs of trauma. DNA tests determined that the child s mother was Jane Doe No. 3, whose body was found 10 miles east near Jones Beach State Park. 45 She was reported to be non-Caucasian and was wearing earrings and a necklace. 19

Jane Doe No. 3 : On April 11, police in Nassau County discovered dismembered skeletal human remains inside a plastic bag near Jones Beach State Park. DNA analysis identified this victim as the mother of Baby Doe. 45 She was found wearing similar jewelry to Baby Doe. 18

Jane Doe No. 7 : Also on April 11, at nearby Tobay Beach, a separate human skull and several teeth were recovered. 20 43 These remains were linked by DNA testing to a set of legs found in a garbage bag on Fire Island on April 20, 1996. 45

Other possible victims edit

These additional cases have not been officially linked to the other 10 bodies, but are being considered by police.

On June 28, 1997, the dismembered torso of an unidentified young African-American female was found at Hempstead Lake State Park, in the town of Lakeview. The torso was found in a green plastic Rubbermaid container, which was dumped next to a road along the west side of the lake. Investigators reported that the victim had a tattoo of a heart-shaped peach with a bite out of it and two drips falling from its core on her left breast. Her head and limbs were never found, the identity of the victim was never determined, and she is referred to as Peaches by investigators. 46

On March 3, 2007, a suitcase containing the dismembered torso of an unidentified Hispanic or light-skinned African-American washed up on a beach at Harbor Island Park, in the town of Mamaroneck. The victim had a tattoo of two cherries on her left breast that was similar in appearance to the tattoo found on Peaches, and was determined to have been stabbed to death. Never identified, the victim is referred to as Cherries by investigators. One of her legs washed up at Cold Spring Harbor on March 21, and her other leg washed up at Oyster Bay in the village of Cove Neck the following day. Both Peaches and Cherries were dismembered in a fashion similar to that of Jessica Taylor and Jane Doe No. 6, and both are possibly linked to the other 10 official victims. 46 47

On May 17, 2011, the New York Post reported that Long Island police are now revisiting at least two other similar unsolved murders of prostitutes. The only victim named in the article was Tanya Rush, 39, a mother of three from Brooklyn whose dismembered body was found in a small suitcase in June 2008 on the shoulder of the Southern State Parkway in Bellmore, New York. Police refused to reveal information about the other case. 48

Shannan Maria Gilbert October 24, 1986 – May 1, 2010 was an escort who may have been a victim the Long Island serial killer. She left for a client s residence in Oak Beach after midnight on May 1, 2010. At in the morning, 911 dispatchers received a panicked phone call from Gilbert, who can be heard saying that there was someone after her and that they were trying to kill her. She was last seen a short time later banging on the front door of a nearby Oak Beach residence and screaming for help before running off into the night. 49 After nineteen months of searching, police found Gilbert s remains in a marsh, half a mile away from where she was last seen. 50 In May 2012 the Suffolk County medical examiners ruled Shannan s death as death by misadventure or inconclusive ; while her family believes she was murdered. 51 On November 15, 2012 a lawsuit was filed by Mari Gilbert Shannan s mother against the Suffolk County Police Department in the hopes of getting more answers about what happened to Shannan the night she went missing. 52 Due to controversy surrounding the cause of Gilbert s death, in September 2014, famed forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden agreed to conduct an independent autopsy of Shannan Gilbert s remains in hopes of determining a clear cause of death. 53

On January 23, 2013, a woman walking her dog found human remains intentionally buried in a small piece of brush in a sandy area along the shore at the end of Sheep Lane in Lattingtown, near Oyster Bay. The remains are believed to be of a woman between the ages of twenty and thirty years old, possibly Asian. She was wearing a twenty-two karat gold pig pendant which may be a reference in Asian culture to The Year of the Pig. This leads some to believe she died at the age of twenty-nine. There was trauma caused to her bones; investigators believe she was buried before Hurricane Sandy in late 2012. Her case may be connected to the other 10 bodies found thirty-two miles away in and around Gilgo Beach, New York. 54

On March 16, 2013, a 31-year old Yugoslavian-American woman later identified by the name of Natasha Jugo was last seen leaving her home near Alley Pond Park, Queens. Her car was found along Ocean Parkway and some of her clothes and belongings were found in the sand near Gilgo Beach the following day. Jugo was described as 5-feet, 7-inches tall, 120 pounds with brown eyes and blonde hair. She was last seen wearing a black robe, pink pajamas, gray hooded sweatshirt, black coat and black boots. Police are unsure whether the case is connected to the victims of the Long Island Serial Killer. Jugo s family mentioned that she had a history of problems in which she thought people were following her. 55 56 On June 24, 2013, Natasha s body washed up on Gilgo Beach. 57

References edit

8 Sets Of Remains Now Found On Beach. WNYW. Retrieved 4 April 2011.  dead link

3 More Sets of Human Remains Found on New York Beach. Fox News. 2011-04-04. Retrieved 4 April 2011. 

Cops Confirm New Remains Human; Skull Also Found Along Ocean Parkway. CBS New York. 2011-04-11. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 

Latest Remains Found on N.Y. Beach Could be Victims of Another Long Island Serial Killer Retrieved 2011-04-13.

a b c d Goldstein, Joseph 2011-05-09. Identifying Another Victim, Officials Raise Possibility of a 2nd L.I. Killer. The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-05-09. 

Police suspect murder victims found on Long Island s Gilgo Beach were murdered by single serial killer, nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2011-11-30.

NY beach community becomes dumping ground of death, Associated Press. Retrieved 2011-05-14.

Jersey City prostitute still missing after 13 months of searching, Amy Brittain, New Jersey On-Line, Sunday, June 12, 2011, AM

On Long Island, Police Search For Missing Woman by Joel Rose, NPR, April 10, 2011

a b Michael Amon, Matthew Chayes, Chau Lam, Paul Larocco, Tania Lopez, Jennifer Smith Andrew Strickler 2011-04-30. Gilbert vanishing reaches one-year mark. Newsday, Newsday.com. Retrieved 2012-06-18. 

Officer and His Dog Play Key Role in Hunt for Remains. New York Times. Retrieved 2011-04-23.

Long Island Serial Killer: Discovery of Three More Bodies on Beach Raises Number of Possible Victims to Eight. ABC News. 2011-04-04. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 

Shannan Gilbert not among new LI bodies, police say. Abclocal.go.com. 2011-04-05. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 

Police expand Gilgo probe into Nassau. Newsday.com. 2011-04-06. Retrieved 2011-04-12. 

More remains found in serial killer investigation Retrieved 2011-4-11.

Human teeth found in serial killer search in New York Retrieved 2011-04-23.

Police raise reward in Long Island serial killer case. CNN.com. Retrieved 2011-06-17.

a b c d e f g Algar, Selim September 21, 2011. Two More Faces of Death:LI detectives release new sketches of victims in hunt for serial slayer. New York Post. Retrieved 2011-09-24. 

a b c Suffolk Cops Getting Tips in LI Serial Killer Probe. LongIslandPress.com. Retrieved 2011-09-24. 

a b Investigators Believe Single Serial Killer Behind Gilgo Beach Bodies nbcnewyork.com. Retrieved 2011-11-30.

Remains found near NY beach believed to be missing prostitute; led to serial killing probe dead link Washington Post. Retrieved 2011-12-13.

a b c Fernandez, Manny; Baker, Al 2011-04-21. Bright, Careful and Sadistic: Profiling Long Island s Mystery Serial Killer. New York Times. Retrieved 2011-05-15. 

Police say New York may have two serial killers The Independent. Retrieved 2011-05-15.

a b Rifkin: I have nothing to do with victims. Newsday. Retrieved 2011-05-15. 

Long Island serial killer. Medical Examiner to study unidentified beach-area remains Retrieved 2011-04-12.

Hawkins, Kristal 2007-07-12. Maureen Brainard-Barnes The Long Island Ripper – Crime Library Crime Library. Trutv.com. Retrieved 2014-05-20. 

April 30, 2013 PM 2013-04-30. Faces of the Gilgo victims. Newsday. Retrieved 2014-05-20. 

DA: Norwich woman likely a victim of serial killer Norwichbulletin.com. Retrieved 2011-04-27.

Three more human remains found on Long Island. WABC-TV. April 4, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-07. 

Drawn to city s glamour, cut down by serial killer. Wall Street Journal. January 24, 2010. Retrieved 2011-04-09. 

Rashbaum, William K.; Goldstein, Joseph April 8, 2011. Prostitutes killer seen as versed in police techniques. New York Times. Retrieved 2011-04-09. 

a b Police find more victims of suspected Long Island serial killer. BNO News. April 4, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-07. 

Terror on Long Island Newsweek. Retrieved 2011-04-27.

Pete Samson 2012-02-11. Call girl: I ll be the bait to lure my sister s killer. London: News Group Newspapers, thesun.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-06-18. 

Cops: Long Island Bodies May Be From More Than One Killer. ABC News. April 11, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-17. 

Bodies found at LI beaches map. Newsday. April 11, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-17. 

4 Bodies Leave Hamlet On Edge. nytimes.com. 14 December 2003. 

IN BRIEF - A Manorville Body Is Identified - NYTimes.com. nytimes.com. 8 February 2004. 

Long Island s Other Serial Killer Long Island Press

Bodies found at LI beaches. Newsday. 

Craigslist Ripper police reveal at least TWO killers dumped bodies on Long Island beach as new victim is identified Retrieved 2011-05-09.

11 Bodies 2 years later, LI Serial Killer Still on the Loose Fox19

a b Bodies found at LI beaches. Newsday. 

Among Bodies Discarded on a Beach, One That Doesn t Fit New York Times. Retrieved 2011-05-30.

a b c Pursuing Identities, Police Disclose Details about LI victims New York Times

a b Long Island Serial Killer: Two Ocean Parkway Bodies Still Await Identification - Long Island Press. Long Island Press. 

The Doe Network: 605UFNY. doenetwork.org. 

2 murders eyed for tie to LI serial slays New York Post. Retrieved 2011-05-18.

48 Hours uncovers missing escort Shannan Gilbert s final minutes. cbsnews.com. 20 July 2013. 

Body of Shannan Gilbert found in Oak Beach, L.I. ; Had been missing since May 2010 – NY Daily News. Daily News New York.  

Shannan Gilbert s Cause of Death Undetermined, According to Medical Examiner s Office NBC New York

Algar, Selim. Family of Gilgo Beach serial killer victim Shannan Gilbert files lawsuit against physician - NYPOST.com. New York Post. 

Cristina Corbin. Famed coroner Baden seeks to autopsy remains of Craigslist escort. Fox News. 

Gold pig necklace key to revealing ID of remains found in Lattingtown, though serial killer connection undetermined – NY Daily News. Daily News New York.  

Natasha Jugo Identified As Missing Queens Woman Whose Car Was Found Near Gilgo Beach. The Huffington Post. 

Timothy Bolger 2013-03-18. Gilgo Beach Missing Woman ID d by Police Long Island News from. the Long Island Press. Retrieved 2014-05-20. 

Gilgo Beach body is that of missing Queens woman. Newsday. 2013-06-27. Retrieved 2014-05-20. 

External links edit

Hannaford, Alex. Who will catch the Long Island Serial Killer.. GQ Magazine 2011-11-18

Kolker, Robert. A Serial Killer in Common. Nymag.com. 2011-05-29.

Gallucci, Jaclyn. Girls Disappearing: Behind The Headlines Of The Long Island Serial Killer Case Long Island Press. 2012-07-12.

Gallucci, Jaclyn. Lost Girls: When Women Go Missing, Some Matter, Prostitutes Don t Long Island Press. 2010-10-21.

Google, Inc. Locations and dates of remains discoveries on Long Island. Google Maps Map. Cartography by Google, Inc. zAfqjpCEGVmw.kKQjbFqK4dUY. Retrieved 2015-01-20.

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Categories: 2009 murders in the United States2010 murders in the United StatesCrimes in New YorkCrimes against sex workersMurder in New YorkAmerican serial killersUnidentified serial killersUnsolved murders in the United StatesCrime in the New York metropolitan areaUnidentified murder victimsMale serial killers.

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NYPD finds woman stabbed to death while raiding man s apartment and he confesses to THREE killings over 19 years. By Daily Mail Reporter. Published: EST, 5.

What has become of the so-called Long Island Serial Killer who terrorized New York City four years ago. You may recall that 10 corpses, including at least six known.

Autopsy finds no drugs in dead hooker s system, suggests she was frantically running from Long Island serial killer The body of Shannan Gilbert, 24, was found.

Apr 21, 2011  In interviews with serial-killer experts and criminologists, including a former F.B.I. profiler, a portrait emerges of the man who investigators on Long.

The latest coverage on the search for a suspected serial killer on LI. article Suffolk 3/12/15 Gilbert s kin: I wish we would ve done more The New Jersey woman whose.

The Long Island serial killer also referred to by media sources as the Gilgo Beach Killer or the Craigslist Ripper is an unidentified suspected American serial.