TRANSCRIPTION OF
PRESS CONFERENCE
Good morning everyone.
We're here -- I'm here -- with our fellow task force members to announce the identity of what has formerly been known as Fire Island Jane Doe.
On April 25, 1996, female remains consisting of legs and feet were found on the bay side shore of Fire Island about a mile west of Davis Park Beach. Then, approximately 15 years later, on April 11, 2011, additional remains consisting of a skull were discovered at Tobay Beach in Nassau County. Those remains -- that skull was found following the discovery of the remains of Jessica Taylor -- and the skull was found on the same day as the remains of what is commonly come to be referred to as Peaches was found on Jones Beach.
Thereafter, in July 2011, the Suffolk County Crime Lab linked the two sets of remains via DNA analysis, and by that I mean the legs that were found in the vicinity of Davis Park were compared with the remains found at Tobay Beach, and it was determined that it was the same person. Since 2011, that victim was known as various names including Fire Island Jane Doe.
Today, we are here to announce that as part of the Gilgo Task Force reexamination of all the evidence in the case, we were able to identify Fire Island Jane Doe as Karen Vergata, who was 34 years old at the time of her disappearance. And I believe we have a picture of Ms. Vergata, and I think it's important that we remember and honor not only Ms. Vergata, but all the victims on Gilgo Beach.
Ms. Vergata went missing at approximately February 14, 1996. At the time she lived on West 45th Street in Manhattan and was believed to be working as an escort at the time of her disappearance. There was no missing persons complaint filed at the time of that disappearance.
In August of 2022, approximately 6 months after we formed this Gilgo Task Force, a DNA profile suitable for genealogical comparison was developed from the remains of Karen Vergata.
In September of 2022, the FBI was able, via a genetic genealogy review, to identify Ms. Vergata presumptively as Fire Island Jane Doe. Thereafter in October of 2022, using a buccal swab from a relative of Karen Vergata, we were able to definitively identify her.
Prior to disclosing this information, of course we needed to contact all of Ms. Vergata's family members and additionally, at or around the same time, we were beginning our grand jury confidential investigation into what has been known as the Gilgo 4 -- that is, the murders of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, and Amber Costello -- so we decided we were not going to make any public comment at this time.
However, since then, the results of that investigation have become public, and we have made the necessary notifications to Ms. Vergata's family, we can make this important announcement now.
I just want to thank in particular Special Agent Lori Giordano from the FBI and her work with the familial DNA. She worked in conjunction with us, our Suffolk County Crime Lab, Don Dollar of the Suffolk County Crime Lab, and his team, in coordination with the Suffolk County Police Department's Homicide Unit. So I want to thank them, in particular for all of their work.
Of course I want to thank our task force members, Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon, ASAC Spencer Horn from the FBI. I want to thank the New York State Police, Suffolk County Police Department, Rodney Harrison -- who couldn't make it here, I understand Chief Rowan is here in his place instead -- but I want to thank them for not only their work on this case but for all their work in the task force going forward.
It's important to note that there are no charges at this time. Ms. Vergata's disappearance was in 1996 which is 27 years ago. We are going to continue to work this particular case as we did the Gilgo 4 investigation. We're going to have no comment on what, if any, suspects we've developed at this time. This is a confidential investigation so I'm not going to be taking any questions, but our investigation is continuing and thank you all very much.
