Ashley Ellerin Killer Michael Gargiulo Facing Trial

A man accused of killing Ashley Ellerin, the former girlfriend of Ashton Kutcher, and one other person is facing trial in Los Angeles, officials have said.Kutcher was reported at the time (2001) to have came by Ellerin’s house to take her to a party, but received no answer. Kutcher told police he saw through a back window what looked like wine stains on the carpet before he left. Ashley Ellerin was found the next day stabbed to death. Kutcher was never considered a suspect.

The second victim, Maria Bruno was founded stabbed to death in a similar fashion only 40 miles away in 2005. A Santa Monica woman nearly became the third victim last year, but managed to fight back and survive. DNA from blood left at the scene led to Gargiulo’s arrest.Police are continuing their investigation, and fear that Gargiulo may have been a serial killer active for over 15 years.

Read more...

DNA Evidence Links Man to Slaying of Kutcher's Ex Ashley Ellerin

DNA evidence has linked an air conditioning repairman to the stabbing deaths of three women, including a former girlfriend of actor Ashton Kutcher, police said Friday.Michael Gargiulo, 32, of Santa Monica has been in custody since July for a separate knife attack and could face murder charges as soon as next week, police said.Santa Monica police Lt. Darrell Lowe said DNA collected from a crime scene last spring helped link Gargiulo to the stabbing deaths of women from Los Angeles, suburban Chicago and Monterey Park.

One of the cases involves 22-year-old Ashley Ellerin, Kutcher's former girlfriend, who was found dead in February 2001 in her Hollywood Hills home.Kutcher, who starred in the television series "That '70s Show" and is married to actress Demi Moore, told police he went to pick up the fashion student-model for a post-Grammy Awards party, but she did not answer the door. He checked a back window and spotted what he thought were red wine stains on the carpet and then left. Her body was discovered the next day by a friend.

Kutcher's agent, Stephanie Simon, said the actor had no comment.Police said they have a DNA match that links Gargiulo to another fatal stabbing of a Monterey Park woman in 2005. They also suspect Gargiulo in the 1993 killing of a high school girl in the Chicago suburb of Glenview, where Gargiulo lived at the time. Tricia Pacaccio, a senior at Glenbrook South High School, was found stabbed to death on her front doorstep, clutching her door key.

Gargiulo was being held in lieu of $1.1 million bail on attempted murder and burglary charges stemming from the April 28 stabbing of a Santa Monica woman in her home, Lowe said. Detectives matched a DNA sample taken from blood at the crime scene to Gargiulo. Lowe said further database cross-referencing found that Gargiulio's DNA matched genetic evidence in the three killings.

Read more...