en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bittrolff
1 correction found
They also confirmed that the deaths of the other Long Island victims followed this same blueprint.
June 6, 2024 reporting did not say prosecutors had confirmed the blueprint applied to all the other Long Island victims. At that point they said it may connect Heuermann to Valerie Mack, and they were still investigating whether other deaths were related.
Full reasoning
This sentence overstates what prosecutors said on June 6, 2024.
Contemporaneous AP reporting from that day says prosecutors believed one entry in the planning document "may connect" Heuermann to Valerie Mack, and explicitly noted that "Heuermann has not been charged in the death of Mack." The same report also says "Investigators long said it was likely that not all of the deaths were the work of the same killer." That is the opposite of a confirmation that the other Long Island victims all followed the same blueprint.
Later reporting also shows Valerie Mack was not charged until December 17, 2024, months after the June 6 press conference. That AP report further notes that "Authorities have still not charged anyone in the deaths of some other people whose remains were found on Long Island." So June 6 did not produce a blanket confirmation about the other victims.
In short: prosecutors said the document supported the new Costilla/Taylor charges and might relate to Mack; they did not confirm that the other Long Island victims all followed the same blueprint.
2 sources
- Man charged in Gilgo Beach serial killings kept 'blueprint' of crimes on computer, prosecutors say - KTVZ
"Prosecutors believe that entry may connect Heuermann to yet another victim, Valerie Mack ... Heuermann has not been charged in the death of Mack." The same article adds: "Investigators long said it was likely that not all of the deaths were the work of the same killer."
- Suspect in Gilgo Beach serial killings is charged in the death of a seventh woman - KVIA
On December 17, 2024, AP reported that Heuermann "was charged on Tuesday in the death of a seventh woman," Valerie Mack, and also stated: "Authorities have still not charged anyone in the deaths of some other people whose remains were found on Long Island."