CHESTER COUNTY, S.C. — The arrest of a suspected serial killer in New York and his developing connections to South Carolina is leading to some detectives looking through old cases for any possible links.
Now, a father in an unsolved case is hoping that investigators in Chester County will do the same for his daughter’s killing.
Melissa Whitis was killed in 2019. Her body was burned and thrown into a ditch on a rural Chester County road. The case was never solved.
On Thursday, Melissa’s father spoke with Channel 9′s Tina Terry about his push for answers in the case. He wants to know if Rex Heuermann could be responsible for his daughter’s death.
Heuermann was arrested on suspicion of three counts of murder in New York. He’s alleged to be a serial killer with numerous victims who were all buried in the same area of Long Island. One of those victims was from North Carolina.
Since his arrest, Channel 9 has uncovered numerous connections between Heuermann and Chester County, South Carolina.
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“We just want closure, it’s been four years,” said Larry Farris, Melissa’s father.
Farris spoke about the 31-year-old mother of four. She’s from Kentucky, but on Sept. 14, 2019, she called from a gas station in Virginia saying she needed money.
Whitis was last seen alive on Sept. 17, near Interstate 40 in Davie County. On Sept. 20, a passerby found her body in a ditch near Lizzie Melton Road.
“We don’t know how she ended up in South Carolina,” Farris told Terry on the phone.
Her body was found just 13 miles from a Chester property owned by Heuermann. On Tuesday, detectives were searching for evidence at that property, and they seized an SUV.
“I’m hoping that the sheriff’s office, [South Carolina Law Enforcement Division], FBI, anybody down there will try to find some kind of connection maybe, and look into it,” Farris told Terry.
Earlier this week, we asked if Chester County detectives were looking for any possible links between Heuermann and any open cases here. A spokesperson responded, saying, “Our agency cannot discuss details regarding any open homicide cases in an effort to protect the integrity of these active and ongoing investigations.”
Channel 9 also reached out to other law enforcement agencies in the area. The York County Sheriff’s Office says it’s not looking into Heuermann right now, but the Rock Hill Police Department said it was looking into any possible connections between Heuermann and the disappearance of 18-year-old Aaliyah Bell.
Heuermann is not currently a suspect in any open homicide cases in either North Carolina or South Carolina. He remains in custody in New York.
(WATCH: Gilgo Beach murder suspect purchased lot in South Carolina)
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