Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann was a “loner” who developed a “mean streak” after being bullied in high school.
Speaking at their 40-year-old high school reunion, former classmates of the architect, 59, described him as a ‘victim’ who had a difficult home life and a miserable time at school .
Heuermann was arrested July 13 on suspicion of killing three sex workers whose bodies were found on Gilgo Beach in 2010. He is also the prime suspect in a fourth murder that police hope to charge him with.
The married father, who has lived his entire life in Massapequa Park, pleaded not guilty to all three counts of murder, and his house was taken down by cops.
Members of Berner High School’s Class of 1983 gathered last weekend for a reunion at a bar near Heuermann’s home, with one saying Heuermann was a “punching bag” for everyone. world.
Classmates described Heuermann as an ‘outcast’ and ‘nerdy’, who was in the drama club as a stagehand but had few friends
Heuermann was arrested on July 13 on suspicion of killing three sex workers whose bodies were found on Gilgo beach in 2010
John Parisi told the New York Times: ‘He was harassed a lot. He would take it and take it and walk away. I saw him pushed to his limits.
Heuermann was described as “clumsy” and became “taller and more menacing” in high school after students verbally tortured him.
Parisi added: “I was really scared of him. He was the kind of guy if he snapped he could really hurt you.
“He was disillusioned and he was wrong. You had to be very careful.
Others described Heuermann as an “outcast” and a “nerdy”, who was in the drama club as a stagehand but had few friends.
Don Ophals, who attended kindergarten through grade 12 with his suspected killer, said he was not surprised by his arrest.
“I said, ‘Oh my god, it’s going perfectly. He’s the weird guy,” Ophals said. “He was a recluse, very calm.
“You just saw him as a guy on his own. He barely spoke. He was considered weird, someone you didn’t agree with.
Dan Musto, 55, who grew up with Heuermann, said he had a rocky relationship with his father, Ted, an aerospace engineer and ‘acted out’ by going on a flying spree at the display before his death in 1975.
Heuermann was described as ‘clumsy’ and grew ‘taller and more menacing’ in high school after students verbally tortured him
Melissa Barthelemy, top left, Amber Costello, top right, Megan Waterman, bottom left, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes. Long Island authorities vow to continue investigation into Gilgo Beach murders after charging architect in deaths of three of 11 victims
Authorities have finished searching the property for evidence, having dug up the property’s backyard and used ground-penetrating radar to search for any disturbances
Neighbor Etienne de Villiers, 68, added that when his daughter Victoria, 26, got her driver’s license she wanted to tell him: “Get in your car and drive and never come back.”
It comes after Heuermann’s family returned home for the first time since his arrest, accompanied by Suffolk County detectives.
Heuermann, 59, was arrested July 13 outside his Midtown Manhattan office
Asa Ellerup and her two children, Victoria, 26, and Christopher, 32, looked solemn as they returned to the torn property at 10.30am on Thursday with their family dog.
The family were last seen walking through a Best Buy parking lot after Asa filed for divorce from the alleged killer.
Heuermann, 59, had lived at the property with his wife, son-in-law and daughter for more than a decade after buying the house from his mother in 1994.
Heuermann’s wife was at the property when authorities raided it on July 14, with her attorney saying the family had been “blindsided” by the murder charges.
“Obviously it’s been a shocking time for them and a pretty hard time to understand,” Robert Macedonio said.
“As with any family, it is extremely upsetting and they are totally shocked and taken aback. The family does not want to make any further comments than that.
Asa Ellerup and her two children, Victoria, 26, and Christopher, 32, made solemn figures as they returned to the torn property at 10.30am on Thursday.
Christopher became emotional as he sat on a bench outside the Massapequa Park property with his mother, who looked upset
Heuermann’s daughter, Victoria (left), worked as a receptionist at his architectural firm. She lived on the property with her father, mother and half-brother Chris Sheridan (right)
Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said cops found a “tremendous amount of information” during the search, which included cadaver dogs.
He said police seized the family’s passports, computers, phones and iPads as part of the investigation.
Cops finally finished searching the property for evidence after digging up the property’s backyard and using ground-penetrating radar to search for any disturbances.
Authorities spent 12 days removing any evidence from the property, after discovering a soundproof room under the house.
Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said cops found a “tremendous amount of information” during the search, which included dead dogs.
They removed 297 firearms from the safe and warned that authorities had a “massive amount of material” to catalog and analyze which would take some time.
Heuermann was arrested July 13 outside his Midtown Manhattan property and charged with the deaths of sex workers Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Lynn Costello.
Officials say he is the prime suspect in the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who was discovered on Gilgo Beach in 2010, and plan to charge her with her murder.
The architect has pleaded not guilty to murdering the three women and is next due to appear in court on August 1.
Heuermann was arrested July 13 outside his Midtown Manhattan property and charged with the deaths of sex workers Barthelemy, Waterman and Costello. Pictured with colleague Katherine Shepherd
The family returned to the property after Heuermann’s arrest, taking minimal items with them
The Heuermann-Ellerup home on Long Island is pictured Saturday, as investigators remove items from the home
He is also being investigated for the murders of six other people whose bodies were found at Gilgo Beach in 2011.
Sources say some of the victims may have been killed in the architects’ house, but law enforcement says they are unable to confirm if that is the case.
Heuermann is accused of killing the women while his family was out of town, with investigators finding his and his wife’s hair on the bodies of some of the alleged victims.
He is accused of killing them, then putting them down in a specific way and packing them in hessian sacks, which were later found at Gilgo Beach.
Detectives are now examining unsolved murders across the country to see if they are linked to Heuermann.
Cops are investigating whether he operated in the Atlantic City area and have interviewed imprisoned sex workers who interacted with him.
The investigation now covers four states – Heuermann owns a timeshare in Las Vegas and a property in South Carolina – and police are investigating whether he could be linked to unsolved murders there.
Officers executed search warrants at his home in Chester, South Carolina, and recovered a green Chevrolet Avalanche truck they believe is linked to the suspect and one of the murders and brought it back to New York.
