Gilgo Beach: Police review the crime scene on anniversary

Suffolk police officials on Friday toured the site where the first four sets of human remains were discovered along Ocean Parkway in Gilgo Beach.

Deputy police commissioner Tim Sini along with Chief of Department Stuart Cameron conducted a “review” of the scene where the first of 10 sets of human remains were discovered on Dec. 11, 2010.

Lt. Brian Coltellino, former K-9 unit commander, Dep. Insp. Bill Doherty of the Major Crimes unit and Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer of the homicide squad also were present during the walkthrough.

It was the first time Sini visited the location since he became deputy commissioner last month. During the tour, Cameron, who was commanding officer of the special patrol bureau in charge of coordinating the multi-agency crime scene search at the time, briefed Sini on the case.

“It’s important for me to understand the geography and to understand what happened,” said Sini, a former federal prosecutor appointed last month to replace retiring Police Commissioner Edward Webber. “I cannot emphasize enough, we are committed to doing everything we can to solve these murders.”

Top brass on Thursday assured victims’ families that the investigation remains active and that the department has asked the FBI to assist in the probe.

“Anniversaries create opportunities,” Sini said. “We think it’s important to let the public know we are doing everything we can to solve these murders.”

The discovery of human remains along Ocean Parkway took place during the search for Shannan Gilbert, a Jersey City, New Jersey, woman who was reported missing in May 2010.

The FBI has assisted Suffolk police in the past, but at the department’s request, federal investigators “will take a more active and prominent role,” Sini said at a news conference Thursday at police headquarters in Yaphank.

On Dec. 11, 2010, a Suffolk police officer and K-9 partner searching for Gilbert instead discovered the body of Melissa Barthelemy, 24, of the Bronx, in a thicket of bramble in Gilgo Beach.