A Long Island case that has hovered over Gilgo Beach for years took a sharp turn Wednesday, as Rex Heuermann admitted in court that he killed eight women and discarded their bodies across several Suffolk County locations. The 62-year-old former architect changed his plea in Suffolk County Court, acknowledging he strangled the women and left their remains behind, primarily along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach. He pleaded guilty to the seven murders he had been charged with and specifically admitted killing Karen Bragata; under the deal, prosecutors won't bring separate charges in her death.
Heuermann is expected to be sentenced June 17 to life without parole, plus multiple additional life terms. The plea comes five months before a scheduled trial. He had maintained his innocence since his 2023 arrest, and NBC News reports the reason for his changed plea is not known. His ex-wife, Asa Ellerup, and their daughter watched from the back row of a courtroom filled with reporters, police, and family members of the victims, some of whom wept as he spoke, per the AP.
The New York Times reports Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney asked Heuermann about how he killed some of his victims; "strangulation," Heuermann replied. As Corey Kilgannon writes for the Times, "Heuermann, as he admits to shocking details in the deaths of eight women, has maintained a noticeably calm and normal countenance."
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