The Hollywood Ripper: Who Is He and Where Is He Now?

Michael Gargiulo, also known as the Hollywood Ripper, the Chiller Killer, or the Boy Next Door Killer, is a convicted serial killer who brutally stabbed and murdered three women, and attempted to kill a fourth, between 1993 and 2008. His crimes attracted global attention because one of his victims, Ashley Ellerin, was dating actor Ashton Kutcher at the time of her murder.

A Trail of Blood and Terror:

Gargiulo’s killing spree began in 1993, when he was 17 years old. He allegedly stabbed his neighbor, 18-year-old Tricia Pacaccio, to death on her back doorstep in Glenview, Illinois. Her father found her body the next morning. Gargiulo moved to Los Angeles in 1998, allegedly to escape the scrutiny of the police in Illinois. He committed two murders and an attempted murder in Southern California between 2001 and 2008.

On February 21, 2001, he murdered 22-year-old Ashley Ellerin, stabbing her 47 times 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. On the night she was murdered, Ellerin had planned a date with Kutcher, who later testified at the trial. Kutcher said he went to Ellerin’s home to check on her because she didn’t show up to their date. He looked in her window and saw what he thought were wine stains on the floor, but were actually blood. A roommate found Ellerin’s body the next day.

On December 1, 2005, Gargiulo stabbed 32-year-old Maria Bruno, his neighbor, to death at her home in El Monte, California. She was stabbed 17 times. Gargiulo attempted to murder another neighbor, 26-year-old Michelle Murphy, in her home in Santa Monica on April 28, 2008. She fought off the attack, and blood matching Gargiulo’s DNA was found at the scene.

A Long-Awaited Justice:

Gargiulo was arrested by the Santa Monica Police Department on June 6, 2008. He was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of attempted murder, and one count of first-degree murder in Illinois for the Pacaccio case. He pleaded not guilty and claimed he was innocent. He was dubbed the Hollywood Ripper and the Chiller Killer by the media.

His trial began in May 2019 and lasted for four months. The jury found him guilty of all charges and recommended the death penalty. On July 16, 2021, he was sentenced to death by Judge Larry Paul Fidler, who called his attacks “completely vicious and frightening”. Gargiulo is currently incarcerated in San Quentin State Prison, awaiting another trial in Illinois. He is also suspected of killing a fourth woman in 2005, but has not been charged.

The Hollywood Ripper’s case is one of the most notorious and gruesome serial killer cases in recent history. His victims and their families have finally received some closure and justice, but his legacy of horror and violence will not be forgotten.