Serial Killer Michael Gargiulo (Hollywood Ripper) Documentary

Michael Thomas Gargiulo (born February 15, 1976)[1] is a convicted American serial killer[3] and rapist. He moved to Southern California in the 1990s and gained the nickname The Hollywood Ripper. He was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to death on July 16, 2021

Description of crimes
Gargiulo is a native of Glenview, Illinois, where he may have stabbed his neighbor, 18-year-old Tricia Pacaccio, to death on her backdoor step. Her body was found by her father the next morning on August 14, 1993.[5][6] Gargiulo moved to Los Angeles in 1998, allegedly to escape the scrutiny of police in Illinois,[7] and committed two murders and an attempted murder in Southern California between 2001 and 2008.

On February 21, 2001, he stabbed 22-year-old Ashley Ellerin 47 times to death in her home in Hollywood. Ellerin's injuries included a neck wound that nearly severed her head, and deep punctures to the chest, stomach, and back. Some of her wounds were up to six inches deep.[8] According to detective Tom Small, one stab wound "actually penetrated the skull and took out a chunk of skull like a puzzle piece."[8] On the night she was murdered, Ellerin had planned a date including dinner and drinks with actor Ashton Kutcher.[9]

On December 1, 2005, Gargiulo stabbed 32-year-old Maria Bruno, his neighbor, to death at her home in El Monte, California.[10] She was stabbed 17 times.[8]

Gargiulo attempted to murder another neighbor, 26-year-old Michelle Murphy, in her home in Santa Monica on April 28, 2008.[11] She fought off the attack, and blood matching Gargiulo's DNA was found at the scene.[12]

Arrest and prosecution
Gargiulo was arrested by the Santa Monica Police Department on June 6, 2008. On July 7, 2011, the Cook County State's Attorney charged Gargiulo with the first-degree murder of Tricia Pacaccio.[13] Although Gargiulo was charged in the two California murders as well as the Pacaccio murder in Illinois, police did not link him to any other murders.[5] Gargiulo allegedly told authorities in the Los Angeles County Jail that just because 10 women were killed — and his DNA was present — does not mean he murdered anyone, leading investigators to believe that there are more victims.[5]

Media in Los Angeles dubbed Gargiulo the "Hollywood Ripper" as well as the "Chiller Killer."[13][14] Gargiulo was held at Los Angeles County Jail while awaiting a capital murder trial.[15] A pre-trial hearing was held on June 9, 2017, in Los Angeles Superior Court with his trial scheduled to begin in October 2017.[16] After delays, his trial began on May 2, 2019.[9][17] In May 2019, actor Ashton Kutcher testified about the crimes