Monday, December 20, 2010

Mystery Monday: Bodies on Long Island

This is the most current "mystery" on Long Island. Suffolk County Police are investigating the deaths of four bodies dumped along a roadway. Their identities are unknown. At least two are women.

On Saturday, December 11, 2010, Suffolk County Police K-9 officer John Mallia and his partner, "Blue" (photo, above, from Overoll.com) were conducting exercises and searching for a woman who went missing in May: 24-year-old Shannan Gilbert from Jersey City. They found skeletal remains of a woman. When the search expanded on Monday, imagine their surprise upon finding three more bodies, within a quarter-mile stretch along Ocean Parkway. The parkway runs from Jones beach, which is 14 miles west, past Oak Beach, to Captree State Park.

None of the bodies turned out to be Shannan Gilbert. Police are investigating whether the remains could be of another woman, Megan Waterman, of Scarborough, Maine, who was last seen at a Hauppauge hotel in June, where she was staying with her boyfriend, but early reports indicate it is unlikely her remains.

A web site has been established concerning the whereabouts of 22-year-old Megan Waterman, who was an escort who advertised on Craigslist. A $2500 reward is being offered for her safe return, or her recovery and an arrest and conviction.

The New York Daily News has photos of the missing women.

The police are hoping that science may help crack open the case.

Even if none of the bodies turns out to be Megan Waterman, in addition to the identities of the four bodies recovered, another mystery remains: Where are Shannan and Megan?

If anyone has information concerning the identity of the four bodies, the whereabouts of Shannan or Megan, or any other clues, please contact Crime Stoppers of Suffolk County. Thanks!



6 comments:

  1. Kathleen - Oh, that is is an intriguing mystery! I feel so terrible for the families of those missing women. I think not knowing has to be just about the worst feeling imaginable.

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  2. Sigh. How horrible. Must surely be a serial killer working.

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  3. Hi Margot,
    I'm with you...I could never begin to imagine what a nightmare it must be for the missing women's loved ones. It appears that the two women are not among the recovered remains; it's sad that families who are estranged from loved ones may not be aware that they have been missing; so there may be no missing person's report for the victims.

    Hi Charles,
    At first, the Police Commissioner said that we MIGHT be looking for a serial killer. The SCPD has since backed away from that; for instance, what if there's some guy who does drugs with women, and they overdose? He didn't kill them, he just dumped the corpses. He'd only be guilty of unlawfully disposing of a body. What if they were from graves? There are so many possibilities, and even though 4 bodies dumped in close proximity certainly sounds like the work of a serial killer, the police just don't know -- it's too early to tell. It's difficult to produce a profile until the identity of the victims are known. I'm curious to see what develops ~ I'll keep you posted!

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  4. This is a sad case indeed. Hopefully they will be able to find the missing woman and identify the bodies they have discovered.

    Mason
    Thoughts in Progress

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  5. Hi Mason,
    I hope so, too. If it wasn't already enough, the cops found a missing mother in the woods in Patchogue yesterday. Her death is unrelated to these bodies and the missing women. Just another tragedy and mystery.

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