Andrew Dykes likely faces murder charges in New York for 1997 killing of 'Peaches,' mother of child whose remains were found near Gilgo Beach

Andrew Dykes, the man indicted for the 1997 killing of Gilgo Beach victim Tanya Denise Jackson, whose dismembered body was found miles away from the body of her toddler daughter, waived his right to an extradition hearing in Florida and will likely be taken to Nassau County next week for his arraignment on murder charges, court officials and sources said.

Dykes, 66, an insurance processor living just outside Tampa, Florida, was arrested Wednesday on a fugitive warrant hours after a Nassau County grand jury indicted him on second-degree murder charges for the death of Jackson, according to arrest records and sources.

Florida court officials said that Dykes appeared before a judge on Thursday and told the court that he would not fight being transferred to New York.

For years, the remains of Jackson and her daughter Tatiana, two victims who became part of the investigation into bodies found near Gilgo Beach, were a puzzle to investigators. Police in 1997 discovered Jackson’s dismembered body in a green Rubbermaid container in a wooded area of Hempstead Lake Park, while the remains of her 2-year-old daughter were found in 2011 along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach.

But by 2022, the FBI indicated it had begun using DNA analysis and genetic genealogy in an effort to identify the remains and according to Nassau County police, ultimately zeroed in on Jackson’s and Tatiana’s identities through forensic science.

After discovering the names of both victims, police learned through birth records that Dykes was Tatiana’s biological father.

While details of a possible motive for Jackson’s murder haven’t been disclosed, law enforcement and genealogy experts agree that the discovery of her identity was a key first step in the investigation to identify a person of interest in the homicide.

"That is a critical first step, to know who the suspect is, you have to know who the victim is," said retired NYPD Det. Sgt. Joseph Giacalone, now an adjunct professor at Penn State University-Lehigh Valley.

Genetic genealogy is the forensic technique that involves the comparison of DNA from an unidentified crime victim or suspect with known genetic profiles in publicly available DNA databases to find individuals related to an unknown person.

Colleen Fitzpatrick, a genetic genealogist with the company Identifinders in California, agreed that genealogy has become a major tool in identifying crime victims and possibly leads investigators to suspects.

The technique has been used to identify one of Gilgo Beach victims, Valerie Mack, whom prime Gilgo Beach suspect Rex A. Heuermann has been charged with killing in 2000.

The remains of Jackson, previously known as Gilgo Beach homicide victim Jane Doe No. 3, or "Peaches," and her child were originally part of the investigation into Heuermann and the Gilgo Beach serial killings.

Genetic genealogy was also used to identify the remains of Karen Vergata, whose body parts were found in 1996 on Fire Island and in 2011 near Gilgo Beach. Vergata’s murder has not been charged to Heuermann, who is awaiting trial for a total of seven Gilgo Beach homicides.

Heuermann has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Once a victim is identified through genealogy, it still takes good old-fashioned police investigation to come up with a potential suspect, Fitzpatrick said.

"It is just another source of information," said one retired NYPD chief about the use of genetic genealogy. "A real-life detective has to do the gumshoe work."

Nassau County police have not disclosed what evidence led them to solidify their suspicions about Dykes as the alleged killer of Jackson. When Jackson’s identity was first revealed in April, police noted that Dykes had cooperated with the investigation.

Over the years, a number of experts posited the idea that Jackson’s death and that of her child were not related to the Gilgo Beach serial killings but might have stemmed from an unrelated domestic violence case.

"It may sound a bit cold-hearted, but if you are going to be killed, 90% of the time you would be killed by someone who loved you," said the former NYPD chief who handled numerous cold case investigations.