Tom Small will never forget the moment he found Ashley Ellerin’s body in his rented Hollywood bungalow.
On the night of February 21, 2001, the 22-year-old had just gotten out of the shower and was getting ready for a night out. She was stabbed to death.
The California resident was not discovered until the next morning by her roommate, who had just returned to the residence. Ellerin’s body was found outside the bathroom entrance.
“I’ve never forgotten the atrocity,” Small, a former homicide detective, told FOX News Digital. “I’ve seen a lot of murders over the years. All types. None of them are pretty. But this one stood out. She was so young and the way she was mutilated was just vicious. It was one of the most vicious attacks I’ve ever seen.
“And from her position, it was clear that the suspect wanted us to find her. The person who did this had only one intention: to cause bodily harm. . To inflict pain. That’s all he wanted. He wanted complete control.”
Small lends her voice to the true crime series “Once Upon a Crime in Hollywood,” hosted by Kelly Heyman. Season 2 focuses on the case of Michael Gargiulo, known as the “Hollywood Ripper” and the “Boy Next Door Murderer.” Contains new interviews with the investigators and key experts involved.
“I wanted the public to know that there are people like this out there,” Small said. “In my profession, I’ve seen a lot of murders and stabbings. But the purpose was just killing and destroying. It was brutal. It stays with you.”
Ellerin was stabbed 47 times. Twelve of the wounds were considered fatal. There were numerous defensive wounds on her hands and her right forearm.
“She was hit in the front, back, upper body, lower body and throat,” Small recalled. “This person was on top of her and had to get very close to watch her pass. I had no idea what he was like other than he was the devil. It was evil.”
Ellerin, who was born in Maryland, dreamed of living in a “big city,” Small said. She, like many others, wanted to break into the Hollywood scene. Ellerin was known for her beauty and she quickly connected with her friends in the entertainment industry.
“She had no enemies, but a million friends and associates,” Small said. “Some were in the entertainment industry. Others were personal friends she had grown up with. There were a lot of suspects to choose from. I started researching parolees because of Hollywood Because there was some crime in that area, especially at the time. There was also a lot of street robbery and rape. But there was no sexual element to this. It was more about inflicting pain and control.
“She had some acquaintances,” Small continued. “She was a young, good-looking woman who was attractive to many men. I remember giving her landlord a pretty bad feeling. … We were satisfied that we could exclude him. I did. But it took a while.”
The night Ellerin was killed, she was making plans with Ashton Kutcher. The former “That ’70s Show” star later testified in court that he arrived late for a date with Ellerin and when there was no answer to her door, she looked into her home.
The actor saw what he thought was wine spilled on the carpet. Kutcher noticed her car in the driveway and thought she was angry at him for arriving so late. Assuming Elerin didn’t answer the door on purpose, he walked away.
Police were confused and could not find any concrete clues. But some of Ellerin’s friends remembered a “creepy heating and air guy” named Mike. No one knew where he lived. His car was unknown. But somehow he ended up showing up at Elerin’s house party.
“She might have 60 people, but a lot of people will look at this microphone and say, ‘Who the hell is that guy?'” How does she know about him? ” Small explained. “[According to friends], Ashley kind of blew it off by saying, “He sees my furnace and thinks he’s a friend.” He’s harmless. ”
About a week before the murder, Ellerin hosted a birthday party for one of his girlfriends. Her pals said “Mike” was there and had her “laser pointed” at her.
“One of the witnesses described how he was like a laser beam,” Small said. “As she moved from one of her rooms to her next, he changed her position so as to keep his eyes on her. He also walked all over her house, as if… It was like looking at the layout.”
According to Small, “Mike” suddenly disappeared after Elerin’s murder. Although well established, he was never seen in the neighborhood again. None of his friends wanted to know where he was. He was just a “strange” guy who suddenly disappeared.
Prosecutors say Ellerin first met “Mike” several months before his death. The news reported. The newspaper said he lived nearby and offered to fix Elerin and her friend’s flat tire. I then gave them my business card for an air conditioner repair service.
The Los Angeles Police Department conducted some investigation and obtained the name and driver’s license photo. It was Mr. Gargiulo.
In the Cook County suburb of Chicago, Tricia Pacaccio’s mother was relentless in her pursuit of investigators. The 18-year-old girl was discovered on an August morning in 1993. She was stabbed repeatedly in her chest, chest and arms. Her case has gone cold, and the heartbroken matriarch is desperate for answers. In 2002, new DNA technology allowed investigators to take a new look at evidence originally collected from the crime scene.
Detectives still had Gargiulo on their list of suspects. When they learned he had moved to Los Angeles from Illinois, they contacted the Los Angeles Police Department. A DNA sample was obtained and sent to the Illinois State Police Crime Lab. The DNA matched Pacaccio’s nails.
The Pacaccio family lived near Gargiulo’s childhood home.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office declined to prosecute Gargiulo, the Chicago Tribune reported. According to the report, prosecutors argued that DNA may have been exchanged through chance contact. As for the Los Angeles Police Department, there was no physical evidence linking Gargiulo to Ellerin’s murder.
However, there is no way Mr. Gargiulo will leave the police unattended. In 2003, she claimed that her ex-girlfriend punched her in the face and threatened to kill her, Oxygen.com reported. According to the newspaper, the two met after she hired him to repair her air conditioner. She also claimed that Mr. Gargiulo later stalked her, prompting her to seek a restraining order.
In 2005, Maria Bruno was found dead in her Los Angeles home. The 32-year-old mother of her four children had her throat slit and suffered multiple stab wounds. Blue surgical slippers were found at the crime scene. Mr Small described it as a “thrilling murder”.
In 2008, Michelle Murphy was attacked in her Santa Monica apartment. She was stabbed multiple times in the chest, but she survived. Authorities said Gargiulo cut himself, leaving behind traces of her blood. DNA linked him to other cases.
Gargiulo’s lawyer later claimed in court that other men had committed the murders of Bruno and Elerin. They admitted their client attacked Murphy, but said Murphy was in a “fugue state” due to a personality disorder and had no idea where he was at the time.
The defense also argued that Ellerin was murdered by another man who was jealous that he was romantically involved with her and was trying to date Kutcher.
But the facts were undeniable. Mr. Gargiulo lived near Mr. Bruno and “kept a close eye” on him, he said. He was known for wearing blue surgical slippers. He was also left-handed. The murder was committed by a left-handed perpetrator.
Gargiulo’s past also surprised Small.
“He hit his father,” he explained. “He took the banquet table and smashed it against his sister’s back, breaking it. There were only two people in his family he could respect. One was his mother. The other was him. ‘s older brother, who is also a bit of a thief himself. I think his father was afraid of him.’
In 2019, Gargiulo was convicted of two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. He was sentenced to death in 2021.
“I feel relieved,” Small said.
“He loved watching death,” Small said. “This man deserves everything he’s going to get. His only purpose was to cause pain. I did.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
