How A Pizza Crust Linked Investigators To Alleged Long Island Serial Killer

We’re living the real life of ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ and solving mysteries with pizza crust. If you eat the pizza crust, great for you, if not, listen up.

In case you missed it, Long Island, NY has an alleged serial killer who pleaded not guilty to murder charges linked to the killings of three women of the so-called “Gilgo Four.”

The suspect from Massapequa Park has been identified as 59-year-old Rex Heuermann, according to law enforcement officials on the case.

Heuermann has been charged with first-degree murder and second-degree murder in the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello, according to the indictment. The three women, along with Maureen Brainard-Barnes, were all found in close proximity to one another in 2010 and have been called the “Gilgo Beach Four.” 

When Heuermann wasn’t on Long Island, he was commuting to Penn Station and doing his day job as a Manhattan architect. According to recently released court documents, a surveillance team in January 2023 recovered a pizza box (with all pizza crust remains) thrown out by Heuermann into a garbage can on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

A few months later, hair particles were found on one of the victims which was a direct match to the DNA found on the pizza crust. What are the odds? This was further confirmation for officials to warrant the arrest and no Long Islander has ever been more grateful for pizza than this moment.

Riding the Long Island Railroad will continue to be a mystery for many as grabbing pizza and hopping on the train is a weekly ritual.

Feature photo: Flickr / Cascade Canyon School