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Why was Rex Heuermann not charged in Maureen Brainard-Barnes' murder? Officials say fourth victim's death and disappearance match suspect's MO

As of now, Rex Heuermann faces three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: After thirteen year-long hunt, Rex Heuermann has finally been arrested in connection to the Gilgo beach murders in which remains of four sex workers were found on the Long Island beach in December 2010. The 59-year-old Manhattan architect, who was arrested from his office on July 13, is currently charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello.

Heuermann is also named the prime suspect in the death of the fourth victim, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, but authorities haven’t formally accused him in the case because of missing cell phone records. Brainard-Barnes, of Prospect Street in Norwich, was only 25 years old when she was reported missing in July 2007. Three years later, her remains were found on Ocean Parkway in December 2010, along with other victims. Brainard-Barnes was last heard from on July 9, when she informed a friend she was going on an "out-call" rather than taking care of her in a hotel room, as reported by the New York Post.

Will Rex Heuermann be charged in Maureen Brainard-Barnes' murder?

It was revealed that Brainard-Barnes was contacted with a burner phone sixteen times between July 6 and July 9, 2007. However, the cell tower data for the burner phone were not retrieved by investigators at that time, and the records are no longer available, according to an application for denying Heuermann bail. The loophole apparently prevented Heuermann from being charged in Brainard-Barnes's death, but prosecutors said the investigation is expected "to be resolved," highlighting that the manner of her death and disappearance fits the pattern that officials claim Heuermann followed with the other three victims.

Heuermann's cell phone bills have revealed that he used a burner phone to meet with sex workers Barthelemy, Waterman, and Costello, whose bodies were discovered on Ocean Parkway around the same time as that of Brainard-Barnes. Additionally, it was discovered that he was at an identical location as the burner phones used to contact the three women. The architect was initially linked to the case with a piece of his hair that was allegedly found at the bottom of a burlap bag used to wrap Waterman’s body. Police were also able to connect Heuermann’s Chevrolet Avalanche, which was spotted at the time of Costello’s disappearance.

'He was compulsively searching pictures of the victims'

The district attorney for Suffolk County, Ray Tierney, made another horrifying disclosure, saying that Heuermann was tracking not just the victims but also their loved ones. "He was compulsively searching pictures of the victims, but not only pictures of the victims, pictures of their relatives, their sisters, their children, and he was trying to locate those individuals," Tierney said during a press conference. He also emphasized that during the investigation it was found that the alleged serial killer continued to follow the case and looked for articles about the task force that was investigating the murders.