Ashton Kutcher will this week take the witness stand at the trial of an accused serial killer, who allegedly murdered the actor's former girlfriend Ashley Ellerin. Photo / Getty Images
Ashton Kutcher will this week take the witness stand at the trial of an accused serial killer, who allegedly murdered the actor's former girlfriend Ashley Ellerin. Photo / Getty Images
Opening statements began in the Los Angeles murder trial of an airconditioning repairman charged with the stabbing deaths of two women and a suburban Chicago teenager for sexual gratification.
Michael Gargiulo's trial began with a prosecutor outlining the California cases for jurors, calling the crimes "the methodical and systematic slaughter of women."
"What you will hear is that Michael Gargiulo for almost 15 years was watching, always watching," prosecutor Daniel Akemon said. "And his hobby was plotting the perfect opportunity to attack women with a knife in and around their homes."
Michael Gargiulo is on trial for the murders of three women and the attempted murder of a fourth. He has alluded to being responsible for as many as 10 killings.
Michael Gargiulo, right, appears with his defense attorney Daniel Nardoni in Los Angeles Superior Court for opening statements on his trial on murder charges. Photo / AP
Gargiulo, 43, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder and an attempted-murder charge stemming from attacks in the Los Angeles area between 2001 and 2008, including the death of actor Ashton Kutcher's former girlfriend.
Gargiulo was arrested in 2008 after DNA evidence linked him to the killings.
He was subsequently separately charged with killing 18-year-old Tricia Pacaccio, whose father found her fatally stabbed on their family's doorstep, house key still in hand.
Prosecutors told the jury Gargiulo boasted "I left the b**ch for dead" after slaughtering Pacaccio.
Akemon detailed how he said Gargiulo would stalk his victims before striking.
Ashley Ellerin, a former girlfriend of actor Ashton Kutcher, allegedly murdered by Michael Gargiulo. Photo / LAPD
His method "was to first identify a target who lived near him, acquaint himself with that victim and her habits and routines, and then watch, shadow, stalk and hunt down the victim relentlessly as part of his plan to kill," Akemon said.
Gargiulo was living a "double life", the court heard.
On the one hand he was a husband and father, on the other, "he was attacking women and killing them and he was able to go undetected for almost 15 years," said Akerman.
Gargiulo's defence lawyer is expected to give his opening statement later today.
One of Gargiulo's lawyers has previously said Gargiulo denies any involvement in the killings and that though he lived near all the victims, that doesn't make him guilty.
Gargiulo's trial is expected to take six months.
Kutcher is among the possible witnesses who could be called to testify.
His ex-girlfriend, 22-year-old Ashley Ellerin, was found dead in February 2001 in her Hollywood Hills home.
Ashton Kutcher will this week take the witness stand at the trial of an accused serial killer, who allegedly murdered the actor's former girlfriend Ashley Ellerin. Photo / Getty Images
Kutcher, who had just started appearing in the television series That '70s Show and is now married to actress Mila Kunis, 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.
Ellerin was stabbed 47 times and almost had her head severed from her body.
The third victim in the case, 32-year-old Maria Bruno, was found stabbed to death in her apartment in suburban El Monte in 2005. Her breasts had been cut off.
The fourth victim, Michelle Murphy, survived a stabbing attack in her Santa Monica apartment in April 2008. She is expected to be the prosecution's star witness in the trial, which could last up to six months.
Photos of the deceased and Michelle Murphy, who survived an attack, are displayed in court during opening statements in the trial of Michael Gargiulo.
"He went in and found Michelle sleeping. He leaned over her and stabbed her with a knife," Akerman said.
