In February 2001, Hollywood star Ashton Kutcher drove to a woman's house to pick her up for a date. She didn't answer the door. He looked through the window, saw what he thought was a red wine stain on the carpet, assumed she had gone out without him, and left. The next morning her roommate came home and found her body. She had been stabbed 47 times. The man who killed her had been living a block away, watching her, for months. He had introduced himself as a helpful guy who could fix her furnace. He was friendly at parties. He was, by every account, completely ordinary. He had done this before. He would do it again. And he would not be caught for another seven years.

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🖤 SOURCES & FURTHER READING

Here is everything used to research this episode.

🔗 WEB SOURCES

CBS News / 48 Hours - The Hollywood Ripper: How 48 Hours Helped Crack the Case https://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-hollywood-ripper-how-48-hours-helped-crack-the-case-of-convicted-serial-killer-michael-gargiulo/

E! Online - The Chilling Details of the Murder of Ashley Ellerin and the Hollywood Ripper Trial https://www.eonline.com/news/1045255/a-murder-trial-years-in-the-making-3-deaths-an-alleged-serial-killer-and-the-chilling-reason-ashton-kutcher-s-knock-went-unanswered

NBC News - Ashton Kutcher Testified He Was Freaking Out When Police Told Him Woman Had Been Killed https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ashton-kutcher-testified-he-was-freaking-out-when-police-told-n1011656

The Daily Beast - Hollywood Ripper Sexual-Thrill Killer Survivor Breaks Her Silence https://www.thedailybeast.com/hollywood-ripper-sexual-thrill-killer-survivor-breaks-her-silence-i-woke-up-with-someone-on-top-of-me/

The Daily Beast - Hollywood Ripper Michael Thomas Gargiulo Sentenced to Death https://www.thedailybeast.com/hollywood-ripper-michael-thomas-gargiulo-sentenced-to-death-for-slaying-2-women/

KTLA - LA Serial Killer Michael Gargiulo Convicted in Murders of Young Women https://ktla.com/news/local-news/trial-begins-in-l-a-for-alleged-serial-sexual-thrill-killer-michael-gargiulo/

Investigation Discovery - How Serial Psychosexual Thrill Killer Michael Gargiulo Got Caught https://www.investigationdiscovery.com/crimefeed/serial-killer/how-serial-psychosexual-thrill-killer-michael-gargiulo-got-caught/

Fox News - Hollywood Ripper Michael Gargiulo Liked to Watch Death https://www.foxnews.com/us/hollywood-ripper-michael-gargiulo-liked-watch-death-inflicting-pain-victims

Chicago Sun-Times - Michael Gargiulo Trial: Prosecutor Links Illinois, California Attacks https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2019/8/7/20758568/michael-gargiulo-trial-california-illinous-murders

CBS Chicago - Convicted Serial Killer Michael Gargiulo Extradited to Illinois for 1993 Murder of Tricia Pacaccio https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/serial-killer-michael-gargiulo-extradited-murder-tricia-pacaccio/

Fox 32 Chicago - Hollywood Ripper Faces Charges in 1993 Glenview Murder of Tricia Pacaccio https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/michael-gargiulo-1993-glenview-murder-tricia-pacaccio

Criminal Discourse Podcast - Michael Gargiulo https://criminaldiscoursepodcast.com/michael-gargiulo/

🎬 DOCUMENTARY & TV

48 Hours - The Boy Next Door (2011) / The Hollywood Ripper (CBS) The CBS News program that first connected Gargiulo's California murders to the 1993 killing of Tricia Pacaccio in Illinois, and whose broadcast directly prompted witnesses to come forward with information that led to new charges.

Once Upon a Crime in Hollywood - Season 2 (2023/2024) Features new interviews with LAPD Homicide Detective Tom Small, the lead investigator on the Ashley Ellerin case, and other key figures. Available to stream.

People Magazine Investigates - The Hollywood Ripper (Max/Discovery) In-depth documentary on the full arc of the case from the 1993 Illinois killing through the California murders and the 2019 trial.

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