Massapequa, its residents proudly proclaim, is a cop town. Perched on Long Island's idyllic South Shore, it is just an hour's journey via train from Manhattan. The community is home to New York Police Department (NYPD) detectives, multi-generational police families, officers from Nassau and Suffolk Counties, and members of myriad other law enforcement agencies.
When body parts started to be discovered in 2010 on Gilgo Beach— not far from where local teens work as lifeguards— it became clear that a serial killer had been active on Long Island for years. The rumour mill went into overdrive. Was he local? Was he still hunting? And was he, after operating for so long without getting caught, perhaps even wearing a badge?
The 2023 arrest of architect Rex Heuermann put to rest those theories, and his admission in court this week to the murders of eight women has brought even further closure to Long Island police, they said. It's a great relief, said Craig Garland, a retired NYPD detective, Massapequa resident, and Little League baseball organizer. Some were trying to pin this on a cop... it's great closure for the law enforcement community to know that this wasn't a cop that was a serial killer.
Heuermann, a 62-year-old married father-of-two, was arrested in July 2023 in Manhattan after authorities obtained his DNA from a discarded piece of pizza outside his mid-town office. His daily commute from Massapequa Park to New York City took him right past the local police bar Johnny McGorey's, a popular pub directly next to a rail station where officers discussed the hunt for the murderer.
There are probably more cops that live in [the] Massapequa, Massapequa Park area than any other part of Long Island, said Bob Livoti, president of the Association of Retired Police Officers. Massapequa is home to many firefighters and medics, which was particularly significant when the area lost around 350 people, including many first responders, during 9/11.
The case of Gilgo Beach not only plagued investigations but also sparked scandal within the police department, particularly after Suffolk County Police Chief Jimmy Burke was arrested in 2013 on sensational charges involving a cover-up. These allegations of corruption added fuel to conspiracy theories about law enforcement connections to the serial killer and delayed the investigation into the murders.
As Heuermann's guilty pleas bring some relief, the community remembers the lasting impact of the victims' families. Reverend Gerard Gentleman of St Rose of Lima Church emphasized the importance of supporting each other through tragedy and reflecting on the tight-knit fabric of Massapequa after such disruptive events.
While police may feel vindicated, areas like Massapequa, once shaken by the fears of having a killer among them, are now left facing the ghost of what could have been, as the search for closure continues for the families of those affected.
