Suspected Long Island Serial Killer May Soon Cop a Plea

Rex Heuermann, the New York architect accused in the Gilgo Beach killings on Long Island, is expected to change his plea to guilty in connection with a string of murders dating back to the early 1990s, according to multiple outlets. Sources tell FOX 5 and the New York Post that prosecutors and Heuermann's defense attorney are discussing a deal that could see the Massapequa Park resident enter the plea at an April 8 court appearance. Heuermann, 62, has been indicted in seven murders involving women whose remains were found along Long Island's Ocean Parkway between 1993 and 2010, near the Gilgo Beach area, per Fox News.

He was first charged in the 2010 deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello, with additional counts later added in the killings of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Jessica Taylor, Sandra Costilla, and Valerie Mack of Philadelphia. Prosecutors allege the crimes involved torture, mutilation, and dismemberment. Heuermann faces a potential life-without-parole sentence. His legal team recently failed in a bid to suppress DNA evidence that investigators call central to the case. A source tells the AP that both the victims' families and Heuermann's own family members have been informed of his expected upcoming plea.