It is unlikely that additional bodies will be found along a seaside road where the corpses of four women were discovered in recent days, a police official said Friday, emphasizing that detectives remain open to any scenario to explain their discovery.
Despite comments earlier in the week from Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer that it appeared possible the deaths of the four women were the result of a serial killer, Deputy Inspector William Neubauer told reporters Friday that detectives were not limiting themselves to any theory.
"We have no idea whatsoever whether we're dealing with a serial killer," he said. "Anything is possible at this point, because there's so many unanswered questions."
Neubauer said an expanded search of a 15-mile stretch of Ocean Parkway, where the bodies were found, was nearing its conclusion, adding "the likelihood of finding further remains is remote."
Detectives believe the four women died elsewhere and were then taken to the site, a narrow strip of land that divides the Great South Bay from the ocean. The parkway connects Jones Beach with several state- and town-run beaches to its east along the south shore of Long Island.
Neubauer reiterated Friday that police have no suspects and that it could take weeks to determine the identities of the four women. The New York City medical examiner is helping the identification process.
The first body was located as police were searching for clues into the disappearance of Shannon Gilbert, a 24-year-old prostitute last seen in Oak Beach, a gated community of million-dollar seafront homes. The other three bodies were found Monday.
Police on Thursday eliminated Gilbert as a possible victim after comparing her medical records with those of the four victims.
Neubauer said Friday it also appeared unlikely that a missing Maine woman last seen working as an escort on Long Island was among the four, although there was no official confirmation ruling her out.
The discovery drew comparisons to a 4-year-old New Jersey case in which four prostitutes' bodies were found in a drainage ditch in Egg Harbor Township, just outside Atlantic City and about a mile from the beach. Those killings remain unsolved.
Atlantic County Prosecutor Theodore Housel said Tuesday that Atlantic County detectives were still investigating the bodies found in November 2006 and had spoken with authorities in New York about their case.