FBI Takes to the Sky in Long Island Serial Killer Search

The FBI took to the air today to assist the Long Island serial killer investigation. The federal law enforcement agency is using high-tech planes and helicopters equipped with high-resolution cameras to take aerial images of beach areas where at least eight sets of human remains have been found in the past four months.

"The aviation bureau [previously] identified a significant number of items that aren't natural to the area," Nassau County Acting Police Commissioner Thomas Krumpter said at a 7 a.m. media briefing today. "It is unknown at this time what they are, and that is what we are doing here today. We're going to clarify what those items are."

Krumpter said the areas where the unidentified items have been found encompass a 40-acre stretch of land on the north side of Ocean Parkway that is virtually inaccessible by foot.

The ongoing search began in December, when the bodies of four women were found along a Long Island barrier beach during a search for Shannon Gilbert, a 24-year-old prostitute from New Jersey who has been missing since May. Police were looking for her there because she had called the police from the area. She has not been found.

All four of the bodies were found wrapped in burlap sacks. The victims were later identified as Megan Waterman, 22, of Long Island, N.Y.; Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25, of Norwich, Conn.; Melissa Barthelemy, 24, of Buffalo, N.Y.; and Amber Lynn Costello, 27, of Wilmington, N.Y.

A full timeline in the case is not yet complete, but police have said that Brainard-Barnes was last seen alive on July 9, 2007. If her death occurred around that time, her homicide would be the oldest. Costello, who vanished in September, is the most recent of the identified victims to go missing, police said.

Police subsequently have recovered the remains of four additional unidentified people near the same beach. Their sexes and identities are not yet known, and police have yet to link them to the previous discoveries. However, the medical examiner's office has determined that Gilbert's remains are not among the most recent that have been recovered.

On Monday, Nassau police also discovered two sets of bones near the Jones Beach water tower. The bones, which are believed to be human, are undergoing forensic testing.

Today's aerial imaging search comes about a week after police were approached by Gene Robinson, president of RP Flight Systems in Austin, Texas, which builds unmanned aerial vehicles. Robinson is also director of RP SearchServices, a tax-exempt nonprofit that supplies technology services for search and recovery operations.

"We volunteered last week to come out and do high-resolution digital imaging," Robinson told AOL News. "Apparently someone up there thought it was a good idea, so they decided to go for it."

RP SearchServices has been involved in several high-profile missing person cases in the past seven years, including the search for missing Alabama teen Natalee Holloway, California high school student Chelsea King and missing Florida tot Caylee Anthony. The organization was also involved in the recent search for Genghis Khan's tomb in Mongolia, and it regularly assists other missing person search groups, including Texas EquuSearch.

"Aerial imaging is the best way to go out there," Robinson said. "With the right cameras and the right resolution, they will definitely be able to pick out areas of disturbed earth, containers, bags, bones, etc. Let's put it this way: We were out on the Jersey shore a year ago in April looking for some folks, and we were finding things that were the size of a Hershey chocolate squirt bottle. So that gives you an idea of what our capabilities are."

On Wednesday, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer told reporters that the high-resolution technology the FBI is going to use should be able to provide a detailed representation of the area.

"We're hoping the technology will help identify skeletal remains that may still be out there," Dormer said.

Robinson said he does not know what type of equipment the FBI will be using in the field today, other than the helicopters and planes that were mentioned during today's news conference.

"They are going to be using full-scale helicopters and airplanes today. The helicopters I agree with, but the airplanes I don't because they typically have to fly so fast," Robinson said.

Robinson added, "Guess how much that helicopter costs to operate? About $900 an hour. You know how much we cost? Zero. Our drone aircraft can do one square mile in 10 minutes. We have aided in the location of eight lost victims [in other cases], and we would go out there and fly for them for free."