Friend remembers local woman believed to be victim of suspected NY serial killer

CHARLOTTE — A friend is remembering a local woman believed to be a victim of a suspected New York serial killer.

Amber Costello, a Charlotte native, was one of three victims, police say they’ve tied to the Gilgo Beach Serial Killer investigation.

Rex Heuermann was charged with killing Costello, Melissa Barthelemy, and Megan Waterman near Gilgo Beach on Long Island.

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‘Caring, strong, young woman’

Chris Bird has been waiting 13 years to find out who murdered Costello, who was his high school friend.

“It’s been so long,” he said. “There was nothing. You know, even I think Nancy Grace jumped on it. Didn’t get nothing.

Bird has been keeping up with the latest in the charges against Heuermann.

“It just makes me mad because he’s such a big monster. Amber’s 4-foot-11, maybe 110 to 115 pounds,” Bird said.

Bird is confident his friend will be remembered as a caring, strong, young woman.

“(She) stood up for herself,” Bird said. “Stood up for others and was somebody you could depend on.”

The disappearance of Aaliyah Bell

Detectives in Rock Hill are looking into the 2014 disappearance of Aaliyah Bell to see if there’s a connection to Heuermann.

Police said she vanished about 20 miles from Heuermann’s property in Chester County.

There is no indication he’s a suspect or person of interest in her case.

‘Could there be something there?’

On Wednesday, a neighbor near Heuermann’s Chester property told Terry that he hopes the search of property was thorough.

“I’m wondering, could there be something there? Could he have buried evidence, or maybe even someone down there?” Chris Lucas asked. “It kind of makes you wonder.”

The warrant also says the truck had a South Carolina tag and was registered to Craig Heuermann, who is reportedly Rex’s brother and lives on that property in Chester.

ABC News reports the truck arrived Wednesday at the Suffolk County crime lab in New York for processing.

Nevada and New Jersey

Investigators are also looking to see if Heuermann is connected to unsolved cases in Nevada in New Jersey.

Atlantic City police are trying to determine if he’s linked to some sex worker killings there.

Heuermann owns a timeshare in Las Vegas. Police there say they’re checking for a connection to unsolved cases.

Unsolved Chester County murder

Heuermann’s property is also 13 miles away from where police found the body of another woman, Melissa Whitis, who was killed in 2019.

Her father told Channel 9 Thursday that he wants to know if Heuermann could be responsible.

Whitis was from Kentucky, but she was found dead in a ditch on a rural road in Chester County.

That case is unsolved, and where her body was found is the only possible link to Heuermann, so far.

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