‘Hollywood Ripper’ sentenced to death for murder of two women
A man known as the “Hollywood Ripper” has been sentenced to death for the murder of two women and attempted killing of a third.
Michael Gargiulo, 45, was convicted almost two years ago, but delays due to procedural problems and the COVID pandemic means it was only on Friday that he was ordered to death row.
The families of his victims wept in court as Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler announced the sentence, saying: “Everywhere that Mr Gargiulo went, death and destruction followed him.”
Judge Larry Fidler ‘death and destruction’ followed Gargiulo. Pic: Associated Press
Gargiulo’s case first came to prominence as one of his victims died before they were due to go on a date with actor Ashton Kutcher two decades ago.
The 45-year-old was convicted of the 2001 killing of fashion designer Ashley Ellerin, 22, and also the 2005 murder of 32-year-old mother-of-four Maria Bruno.
Ms Ellerin had been due to go on a date with the then up-and-coming comedy star Kutcher, who has since starred in The Butterfly Effect and Two And A Half Men.
During the trial, the court heard testimony from the actor, who would have been around 23 at the time.
He spoke of how Ms Ellerin did not answer the door at her Hollywood home when he went to pick her up, and after looking inside he noticed what he thought were wine stains – marks which were actually her blood.
Ms Ellerin was found with 47 stab wounds.
Ashton Kutcher testified earlier in the trial. Pic: Associated Press
Her father, Michael Ellerin, told the court he was tempted to recreate his wife Cynthia’s “mournful scream and primal wailing after finding out that Ashley had been murdered”.
“It marked the beginning of an altered, diminished, heartbreaking life,” he said.
The apartments where Maria Bruno lived. Pic: Associated Press
The second killing took place at Ms Bruno’s home in east Los Angeles in 2005.
Her body was found with her breasts cut off and her implants removed.
Gargiulo was also found guilty of the 2008 attempted murder of Michelle Murphy in her flat in Santa Monica.
Ms Murphy spoke of how she fought off her attacker, asking the court: “How is it fair that one person’s actions can destroy the lives of so many?”
The murderer fled the scene of that incident but left behind a trail of blood – a fact which led to his arrest.
Survivor Michelle Murphy addressed the serial killer in court. Pic: Associated Press
Gargiulo had worked as an air conditioning and heating repairman, bouncer, and aspiring actor.
He was also known in US media as “The Chiller Killer” and by prosecutors as “The Boy Next Door Killer”, as he lived near his victims before stalking and attacking them.
Gargiulo claims he was prevented from testifying by his legal team, saying he was going to death row “wrongfully and unjustfully” after the Californian jury recommended a death sentence.
The judge agreed with the recommendation but it’s unlikely it will be carried out any time soon, as the state of California has not executed anyone since 2006 and the current governor has halted executions while in office.
It is unlikely Gargiulo will be executed any time soon. Pic: Associated Press
Gargiulo will now be extradited to the state of Illinois, where he will stand trial for the 1993 killing of Tricia Pacaccio.
California prosecutors used evidence from this case to demonstrate a pattern of behaviour.
Police officers found a handgun, a silencer and a red notebook described as a “manifesto” when they arrested Luigi Mangione.
The 27-year-old was arrested in December 2024 and charged with killing UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson in New York City.
Mangione‘s lawyers want to block prosecutors from showing or telling jurors at his eventual trial in Manhattan about statements he allegedly made and items they said police seized from his backpack during his arrest at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania.
The objects include a 9mm handgun prosecutors say matches the one used in the killing, a silencer, a magazine with bullets wrapped in underwear and a notebook in which they say Mangione described his intent to “wack” a healthcare executive.
Mangione with his attorney. Pic: Reuters
The defence contends the items should be excluded because police did not get a warrant before searching Mangione’s backpack.
Prosecutors deny claims Mangione was illegally searched and questioned.
They also want to suppress some statements he made to police, such as allegedly giving a false name, because officers asked him questions before telling him he had a right to remain silent.
Last week, Mangione watched surveillance videos of the killing of Mr Thompson, 50, as he walked to a New York City hotel for his company’s annual investor conference.
Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges.
The state charges carry the possibility of life in prison, while federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
This week’s hearing concerns only the state case, but Mangione’s lawyers want to bar evidence from both cases.
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In September, a judge dismissed two terrorism counts against Mangione, finding prosecutors had not presented enough evidence Mangione intended to intimidate health insurance workers or influence government policy.
Trial dates are yet to be set in either the state or federal cases.
Paramount has launched a £108.4bn hostile bid for Warner Bros, challenging Netflix, which had reached a $72bn takeover deal with the company.
Paramount said on Monday that it was going straight to Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) shareholders with a $30 per share in cash offer for the entirety of the company, including its Global Networks segment, asking them to reject the deal with Netflix.
On Friday Netflix struck a deal to buy WBD, the Hollywood giant behind “Harry Potter” and HBO Max
The agreement means Warner Bros Discovery’s library of film and TV successes including Harry Potter and Game Of Thrones will come under the same roof as Stranger Things and Squid Game.
The cash and stock deal is valued at $27.75 per Warner share, giving it a total enterprise value of $82.7 billion, including debt.
But Paramount says its deal will pay $30 cash per share, representing $18 billion more in cash than its rivals are offering.
In a statement, Paramount said it was making a “strategically and financially compelling offer to WBD shareholders” and a “superior alternative to the Netflix transaction”.
File pic: iStock
David Ellison, chairman and CEO of Paramount, said: “WBD shareholders deserve an opportunity to consider our superior all-cash offer for their shares in the entire company.
“Our public offer, which is on the same terms we provided to the Warner Bros. Discovery Board of Directors in private, provides superior value, and a more certain and quicker path to completion.
“We believe the WBD Board of Directors is pursuing an inferior proposal which exposes shareholders to a mix of cash and stock, an uncertain future trading value of the Global Networks linear cable business and a challenging regulatory approval process.
“We are taking our offer directly to shareholders to give them the opportunity to act in their own best interests and maximize the value of their shares.”
Paramount said it had submitted six proposals to WBD in the course of 12 weeks, but that they were never “meaningfully” engaged with.
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