Heuermann reads serial killer books, exchanges letters with another murderer

Admitted Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann is spending his time behind bars reading books about murder and corresponding with another convicted killer, a rare window into life inside the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverhead as his sentencing approaches.

Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. said Heuermann has been largely confined to a 6-by-9-foot cell in voluntary segregation since his arrest in July 2023, but he still has access to books, mail and visits. Among the titles he recently checked out were Chosen to Die by Lisa Jackson, Portrait in Death by Nora Roberts and The Dead Girl by Melanie Thernstrom. More recently, he was reading The Devil’s Banker by Christopher Reich and Westwind by Ian Rankin.

Toulon also said Heuermann has exchanged letters with Keith Hunter Jesperson, the Oregon inmate known as the Happy Face Killer. Jesperson reportedly reached out several times and sent more than 10 letters, and Heuermann wrote back at least once. Jail officials said they cannot read inmate mail, so the contents of the correspondence remain unknown.

The disclosures come as the Gilgo Beach case moves toward another major milestone. Heuermann pleaded guilty on April 8 to murdering seven women and admitted he also killed an eighth victim, Karen Vergata. The killings tied to his plea span from 1993 to 2011. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 17 in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead.

The sheriff said Heuermann has had about 150 visits since being jailed, mostly from family members, friends, his attorney and clergy. Toulon said he has never seen an inmate like him in more than 40 years in law enforcement. The comments underscore the unusual reality of a man who admitted to a string of killings on Long Island still maintaining a limited daily routine, even as the county’s most notorious murder case heads toward sentencing.