The suspected killer in the murder of a mother and her 2-year-old daughter, who was found near where the Gilgo Beach murders transpired, appeared in court on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Andrew Dykes, 66, was arrested, according to ABC 7, in Florida near Tampa. Dykes had a warrant out for his arrest from the Nassau County, New York, area linked to the death of Tanya Jackson and her child, Tatiana Dykes.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, in April 2025, Nassau County Police Detective Sergeant Stephen E. Fitzpatrick announced that the bodies discovered on the Long Island seafront were those of Tanya Jackson, 26, and her daughter.
Jackson, a U.S. Army veteran, was known for decades as Jane Doe #3, or Peaches, due to a fruit tattoo she had, according to The New York Times.
Jackson’s body was reportedly dismembered. Initially, her torso was recovered from a container in a wooded area at Hempstead Lake State Park in June 1997. More of her remains were recovered near Gilgo Beach in 2011.
In 2011, Dykes’ body was found wrapped in a blanket on Ocean Parkway in Babylon. The toddler’s body was located near her mother’s remains. In 2015, DNA testing confirmed Dykes was Jackson’s daughter.
Genetic genealogy positively identified Dykes and Jackson in 2024.
“The pair were found during an extraordinary months-long search effort by police across Long Island that uncovered the remains of ten people. The massive search began in 2010 as police looked for Shannan Gilbert, who had gone missing earlier that year.
In December 2010, four other sets of human remains were found on Gilgo Beach in Suffolk County. These four—Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, Amber Lynn Costello, and Maureen Brainard-Barnes—were dubbed “The Gilgo Four.”
Orthram, the Texas-based forensic genetic genealogy company that helped identify Jackson and her daughter, said in a statement.
Dykes is facing murder charges, according to ABC7.
“She went out with a fight,” John Powell said.
“I promise you,” Randy Powell stated in agreement with John Powell.
While no suspect has been named in the death of Charity and the two children, SCSO CID is performing a thorough investigation.
“Search warrants have been written and executed, with more search warrants anticipated during the investigation,” SCSO wrote. “Interviews have taken place with more anticipated.”
SCSO is still in the information-gathering stage and encourages anyone with information to contact FSSO at 479-783-1051.
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[Feature Photo: Nassau County police]
