Ashton Kutcher has testified against suspected serial killer Michael Gargiulo.
Gargiulo, aka The Hollywood Ripper, is on trial for the murder of three women.
One of which is Ashley Ellerin, a fashion student who Kutcher was dating at the time of her death.
Ashton Kutcher testified at the L.A. trial of suspected serial killer, Michael Gargiulo, the so-called "Hollywood Ripper" accused of murdering three women between 1993 and 2005. https://t.co/Tm3l6a0TCd
— Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) 29 May 2019
The timeline
At a Los Angeles Court yesterday Kutcher testified to meeting Ellerin approximately two months before her death in 2001.
The pair didn't meet again until two weeks before Ellerin's murder, at a housewarming party she was hosting.
They arranged a date of dinner and drinks.
However, on the day in question Kutcher was running late.
He called Ellerin to let her know her would be attending a Grammy Awards party and would meet with her afterwards.
She didn't pick up the call, but later called from a friends phone telling him that was no problem.
This was the last time Kutcher spoke to Ellerin before her murder.
Later that night he attempted a number of calls that didn't connect.
He went to her house where the lights were on and the inside looked messy.
He spotted what he presumed to be red wine stains on the ground, but these turned out to be Ellerin's blood.
The first time Kutcher has ever spoken publicly about that night
Testifying in suspected serial killer's trial, Ashton Kutcher said he was 'freaking out' after learning a woman he planned to take out on a date had been killed - knowing his fingerprints would be on her front door. @KNX1070 (Pool photo by: @GenaroMolina47 ) pic.twitter.com/AEbBQLYqKu
— Margaret Carrero (@KNXmargaret) 29 May 2019
Kutcher never entered the property and Ellerin's body was discovered the next morning by her roommate.
She was stabbed 47 times.
#HollywoodRipper - Pros opening: In 2001 Gargiulo met Ashley Ellerin. Actor #AshtonKutcher went to Ellerin's home to pick her up for a date in February 2001. She didn't answer the door. Her roommate found her the next day, stabbed to death. Ellerin was stabbed 47 times. pic.twitter.com/ABX0hGzTs0
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) 2 May 2019
This is the first time Ashton Kutcher has spoken publicly about the murder.
It's believed his testimony will be vital in establishing a timeline of events leading up to the stabbing.
The trial
Michael Gargiulo is denying all charges and is pleading not guilty to three counts of murder.
In addition to the case of Ashley Ellerin, Gargiulo is accused of fatally stabbing two other women.
32-year-old Maria Bruno was found dead in her Californian apartment in 2005 and a third unnamed woman died of stab wounds in her Santa Monica apartment in 2008.
Gargiulo was arrested in 2008. His trial is ongoing.
