New York (AFP) - A suspect has been arrested in connection with the serial murders more than a decade ago of several women whose bodies were found wrapped in burlap on a beach on New York's Long Island.
Police did not immediately identify the man taken into custody, but press reports on Friday said he was Rex Heuermann, a New York City architect.
Suffolk County police commissioner Rodney Harrison told reporters the suspect had been arrested in Manhattan on Thursday evening.
The New York Times said Heuermann lived in Massapequa Park, a town near Gilgo Beach, where the first bodies were found in 2010, and police had cordoned off his home on Friday.
The bodies of at least 11 people have been found since 2010 along the isolated stretch of ocean beachfront on Long Island.
Law enforcement officials told the Times that Heuermann was arrested in connection with at least some of the killings.
The first bodies, found in 2010, were those of four women in their 20s who had been working as sex workers, advertising their services on Craigslist.
They were believed to be the victims of a serial killer.
The body of a fifth woman who had been working as an escort was found in 2011.
Since then, six other bodies have been discovered in the area but police had said previously that they do not believe all of the cases are linked.
Harrison, the police commissioner, said the suspect would be indicted later Friday and a press conference would be held around 4:00 pm (2000 GMT).
Heuermann is the owner of RH Consultants and Associates, which bills itself on its website as "New York City's premiere architectural firm."
Heuermann was interviewed last year for a YouTube show called "Bonjour Realty."
"I'm a troubleshooter, born and raised on Long Island, been working in Manhattan since 1987 -- very long time," Heuermann said in the interview.
