Nassau County police officials announced the identities of Jane Doe No. 3 and her two-year-old baby on Wednesday, The New York Times reported. The woman, also referred to as “Peaches” because of her fruit tattoo, and the young girl, who is suspected to be her daughter, were found near a desolate stretch of Long Island seafront—the site of the Gilgo Beach serial killings. Decades later, Detective Sergeant Stephen E. Fitzpatrick identified the possible murder victims as Tanya Denise Jackson and Tatiana Marie Dykes. Although Suffolk County officials have led the investigation into the Gilgo Beach killings, it was Nassau County police who made Wednesday’s announcement, since that’s where Jackson’s remains were initially found. Parts of her body were discovered at Hempstead Lake State Park in Nassau County. Additional remains were located in 2011 near Gilgo Beach. Rex Heuermann, an architectural consultant from New York, has pleaded not guilty to the murders of seven women, six of whom were found near Ocean Parkway. However, until Wednesday, three of the 10 victims found in the Gilgo Beach area and nearby Southampton remained unidentified. Authorities have not confirmed if they think Heuermann is responsible for the deaths of Jackson and the child. “I’m not saying it is him, I’m not saying it’s not him,” Sergeant Fitzpatrick said. The Nassau County Police Department posted a “Crime Stoppers Cold Case” notice Wednesday afternoon.
Editor’s Note: The original headline on this story described the mother and daughter as victims of the Gilgo Beach serial killer. It has been updated.
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