New details surrounding the Gilgo Beach killings have emerged following a preview clip from the upcoming Peacock documentary “The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets,” in which Rex Heuermann’s ex-wife described an alleged confession he made regarding the murders, as reported by The New York Post.
According to the clip, Asa Ellerup, who finalized her divorce from Heuermann last year, said he admitted to killing eight women, including details about where some of the crimes occurred. The statements come ahead of Heuermann’s April 8 guilty plea in connection with multiple killings tied to the Long Island case.
BREAKING: Gilgo Beach Serial Killer Rex Heuermann pleads guilty to murdering eight women.
Rex Heuermann, the alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer, has pleaded guilty in Suffolk County Court to the murders of eight women. The murders started in 1993. Their remains were found… pic.twitter.com/2Lu67s42dc — The Facts Dude (@Thefactsdude) April 8, 2026
In the preview, Ellerup recounted asking Heuermann directly about the number of victims.
“So, Mr. Heuermann, I understand that you are confessing to me on these murders — can you please tell me how many of these women did you kill?” she said.
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“He said he killed eight women,” Ellerup told her attorney, Bob Macedonio.
Macedonio responded, “Eight? Who was the eighth? Because he’s charged with seven.”
“I didn’t ask,” Ellerup replied.
Ellerup also said Heuermann told her she was not present during the killings. When asked whether any of the victims were murdered inside their home in Massapequa Park, she said he confirmed that they were.
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“He said yes. They were killed in his room downstairs. All except one,” she said.
The documentary’s final episode, titled “The Confession,” focuses on Ellerup and the couple’s adult daughter, Victoria, as they process the statements ahead of Heuermann’s guilty plea.
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Heuermann has pleaded guilty to the murders of Amber Lynn Costello, 27, Megan Waterman, 22, Melissa Barthelemy, 24, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, victims widely referred to as the “Gilgo Four.” He also admitted to killing Valerie Mack, 24, Jessica Taylor, 20, and Sandra Costilla, 28.
Authorities said Heuermann additionally confessed to the killing of Karen Vergata, whose case had not previously been linked to him.
Prosecutors have said Heuermann carried out several of the killings over decades. His crimes date back to 1993, when Sandra Costilla was killed after being picked up and later found near Fish Cove Road in Southampton.
In April 1996, Karen Vergata was killed after arranging to meet Heuermann. Her identity was not publicly known until 2023, more than a decade after her remains were discovered along Ocean Parkway.
Valerie Mack disappeared between September and December 2000, and prosecutors said Heuermann dismembered her before disposing of her remains in wooded areas in Manorville.
Jessica Taylor was killed in July 2003, with investigators saying she was strangled, dismembered, and her remains discarded.
Maureen Brainard-Barnes’ body was discovered in December 2010, years after she had been reported missing. Authorities have said Heuermann arranged meetings with several of his victims before killing them.
Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Lynn Costello were also among those killed after similar encounters, according to investigators.
Gilgo Beach serial killer pleads guilty to killing 8 women https://t.co/qt8AQcPR4v
— Just the News (@JustTheNews) April 8, 2026
Heuermann had previously denied involvement in the killings before entering his guilty plea.
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Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney addressed the case, stating, “This defendant walked among us playacting as a normal suburban dad when all along he was targeting these women for death.”
“He thought that by killing them, he could silence them forever and get away with murder. But he was wrong.”
BREAKING NEWS: Rex Heuerman pleads GUILTY to killing seven women and confessing to an eighth victim in the decades-spanning Gilgo Beach serial killings. pic.twitter.com/5R7sMvVv15
— The Faulkner Focus (@FaulknerFocus) April 8, 2026
Heuermann is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17.
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