RIVERHEAD, N.Y. (AP) 鈥� The New York architect facing murder charges in a known as the was charged on Tuesday in the death of a seventh woman.
Rex Heuermann pleaded not guilty to killing Valerie Mack, whose remains were first found on Long Island in 2000. Mack, 24, had been working as an escort in Philadelphia and was last seen by her family that year in New Jersey.
Some of Mack鈥檚 skeletal remains were initially discovered in Manorville, New York; authorities found more of her remains about 50 miles (80 kilometers) west, in Gilgo Beach, more than 10 years later. They were unidentified until genetic testing revealed her identity in 2020.
Human hair found with Mack鈥檚 remains was sent for testing earlier this year and found to be a likely match with the genetic profile of Heuermann鈥檚 daughter, prosecutors said in court papers. His daughter is not accused of any wrongdoing and would have been 3 or 4 years old when Mack died.
Heuermann, 61, is charged with killing six other women whose remains were found on Long Island. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
鈥淭he lives of these women matter. We, as investigators, understand that. No one understands that more than the families,鈥� Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said at a news conference with Mack's parents and other victims' relatives.
Mack's parents didn't speak. But four other victims' relatives gave the Macks roses and hugs and, through an attorney, expressed their sadness and solidarity.
鈥淭hey were, and they are, loved. And they are missed every day by those who knew them and who had a strong bond with them,鈥� said Gloria Allred, who represents the families of Melissa Barthelemy, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Jessica Taylor and Megan Waterman.
Outside of court, Heuermann鈥檚 lawyer Michael Brown disputed the evidence presented in Mack鈥檚 death, noting that hair samples collected from Mack鈥檚 body were recovered more than a year ago and saying the DNA technology used to connect her and other victims to his client has never been deemed reliable in a New York case.
He also argued that Tierney鈥檚 office has yet to produce any proof any victims鈥� DNA was found in Heuermann鈥檚 home, including the many weapons and tools seized during recent searches of the property.
鈥淭here鈥檚 something a little weird about these allegations,鈥� Brown said. 鈥淪omething that doesn鈥檛 sit right.鈥�
The investigation into the Gilgo Beach killings dates back to 2010, when police searching for a missing woman found 10 sets of human remains in the scrub along a barrier island parkway, prompting fears of a serial killer.
Over the years, investigators used DNA analysis and other clues to identify the victims, many of whom were sex workers. In some cases, authorities connected them to remains found elsewhere on Long Island years earlier. Police also began reexamining other unsolved killings of women found dead on Long Island.
The case has dragged on through five police commissioners, more than 1,000 tips, and doubts about whether there was a serial killer at all.
Heuermann, who lived with his wife and two children in Massapequa Park on Long Island and commuted to a Manhattan architecture office, was arrested on July 13, 2023. At that point, he was charged with murdering Barthelemy, Waterman and Amber Lynn Costello.
Earlier this year, he was charged in the deaths of three other women 鈥� Brainard-Barnes, Taylor and Sandra Costilla.
In a June court filing, they had recovered a file on a hard drive in Heuermann鈥檚 basement that he used to 鈥渕ethodically blueprint鈥� his killings 鈥� including checklists with tasks to tick off before, during and afterward, as well as lessons for 鈥渘ext time.鈥�
In court papers on Tuesday, prosecutors said the document, which was created the same year as Mack鈥檚 murder, includes details that align with her case.
For example, it names 鈥淢ill Road鈥� 鈥� a road near where Mack鈥檚 first remains were found 鈥� under the heading 鈥淒S,鈥� which investigators believe stands for 鈥渄ump site.鈥�
The document also lists 鈥渇oam drain cleaner鈥� under 鈥淪upplies.鈥� Prosecutors say that on Oct. 3, 2000, Heuermann鈥檚 phone records appear to show him making two calls to a Long Island plumbing company, and he paid another company the following month to check his mainline drain.
In recent searches of Heuermann鈥檚 home and office, authorities say they found old magazines and newspapers with articles about the Gilgo Beach killings and investigation that prosecutors believe he kept as 鈥渟ouvenirs鈥� or 鈥渕ementos.鈥� Among them was a July 29, 2003, copy of the New York Post that included an article about the investigation into Mack and Taylor鈥檚 remains.
Investigators say evidence points to Heuermann鈥檚 home as the scene of the killings 鈥� in most cases, when his family was out of town. Tierney said authorities don鈥檛 know where his relatives were when Mack was killed.
Prosecutors are also looking into the death of , whose remains were first discovered in 1996 and finally identified in 2022 after a new DNA analysis.
In September, new renderings of an unidentified victim who was found in 2011. Officials said the victim, whom for years they had identified as male, may have presented outwardly as female and died in 2006.
___ Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed from New York.
Philip Marcelo, The Associated Press
