Sandra Costilla: How Rex Heuermann Was Linked to 1993

Before Melissa. Before Megan. Before Amber. Before any of the women we came to know as the Gilgo Four — there was Sandra Costilla. Found in the woods of Southampton in November 1993. Twenty-eight years old. From Trinidad and Tobago. And for thirty years, completely disconnected from the Gilgo Beach investigation. Prosecutors say that was a mistake — and that advanced DNA evidence now links her to Rex Heuermann with near-certainty.

Episode 1 of "The Seven" — a seven-part series covering each woman Heuermann is charged with killing. Sandra's case rewrites the entire timeline. If the prosecution is right, this didn't start in 2007 with Maureen Brainard-Barnes. It started in 1993, when Heuermann was 30 years old and years away from the family life prosecutors say he used as cover.

The defense called the evidence "a single hair on a shirt." The prosecution called it a 99.96 percent DNA match. The judge ruled it admissible. The evidence, the wrong suspect, the cold decades, the forensic breakthrough, and what a seven-year gap between Sandra and the next known victim might mean — all of it covered here. This is the foundation of the series.

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This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.

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