The ‘Hollywood Ripper’ Has Been Found Guilty Of Double Murder

Michael Gargiulo, also known as 'The Hollywood Ripper' has been found guilt of double murder following a trial that involved testimonies from his third potential victim, Michelle Murphy and Ashton Kutcher - whom dated one of the victims, Ashley Ellerin.

Gargiulo killed two women in 2001 and 2005, with a third victim in 2008 escaping after he attempted to murder her in the same way. The Hollywood Ripper was nicknamed so because of the nature of his crimes, whereby he would stab women as they slept.

He is also facing charges for the death of Tricia Pacaccio in 1993, but as the alleged murder was in a different state he will be likely extradited to Illinois for a separate trial.

While Gargiulo has been found guilty after four days of deliberation, his defence team are arguing that he suffered from a dissociative disorder leaving him in a 'fugue state' during the murders. As a result, he will now face a new trial to decide if he was sane at the time of the attack.

Upon this his sentence will be decided, with the death penalty a possibility - although executions in California have recently been halted by the Governor, Gavin Newson.

We previously wrote..

Why did Ashton Kutcher testify in the Hollywood Ripper case?

In April this year, Ashton Kutcher testified for around 40 minutes as one of over 100 witnesses who will make court appearances as part of the case surrounding the 1978 murder of Ashley Ellerin, whom he was dating at the time of her death.

It's s been 18 years since Ellerin was brutally stabbed to death in her LA apartment – and yet it was only last month that her alleged killer, Michael Gargiulo, was summoned to court to face charges. Gargiulo, 43, a former air- conditioning repairman, stands accused of killing two women as well as Ashley – Tricia Pacaccio and Maria Bruno – and of the attempted murder of Michelle Murphy.

For the families of the victims, it’s been an agonising time waiting for the so-called ‘Chiller Killer’ – who police believe used his job to gain access to women’s homes – to be brought to justice. Yet, as the prosecution finally started to present their evidence, it wasn’t Ashley Ellerin’s name creating headlines – it was Ashton Kutcher’s.

The actor, who has been married to Mila Kunis since 2015, had been quietly dating Ashley at the time of her murder, and was one of the first people on the scene on the night she was killed.

It was the evening of the Grammy Awards in LA and, according to the police report about the night in question, Ashton– who was enjoying his first taste of fame having just appeared in the comedy Dude, Where’s My Car? – had turned down 22-year-old Ashley’s suggestion that they spend the evening watching the awards ceremony together.

After the show had finished, Ashton told police that he had twice tried to call Ashley, but she hadn’t picked up her phone. So, at 10.45pm, he drove to the fashion student and part-time stripper’s bungalow, located just behind the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard.

The lights were on and Ashley’s purple BMW was parked in the driveway, but Ashton couldn’t get an answer from knocking on the door. He later told police that he looked through a window into the apartment and saw what he thought was red wine pooled on the floor, and so assumed Ashley had gone to bed and drove away. It was actually a blood stain – the result of Ashley being stabbed a shocking 35 times.

On account of what he witnessed, Ashton, now 41, was called to give evidence in the trial – along with Ashley’s room-mate Justin Peterson, who found her body and was one of a number of friends who went to the police to raise their suspicions about Gargiulo.

Ashley’s childhood friend Carolyn Murnick, who has written a book about the murder, calledThe Hot One, tells Grazia that she hopes they will all finally get a resolution now – and that her friend will be remembered in the right way. ‘She wasn’t just a party girl who hung out with Ashton Kutcher, and she wasn’t just one of the many victims of an alleged serial killer,’she says.

‘She was a real person with a childhood and people around her who loved her and still remember her. She was only just starting her life.’ For his part, Ashton has been careful never to speak about the murder outside of legal interviews. Indeed, according to those close to him, the tragedy has, understandably, ‘weighed heavily’ on Ashton –who now has two children with Mila.

‘It’s been a dark cloud over everyone involved,’ a source tells Grazia. ‘But it’s good that those who loved Ashley may finally be getting closure now the case is at last coming to court.'