Ashton's Agony! Kutcher Still Mourns Brutal Murder Of Model Girlfriend As Trial Starts
Apr. 16 2019, Published 7:11 p.m. ET
Long before he became Mr. Mila Kunis, actor Ashton Kutcher, then first finding success on That 70's Show, was dating aspiring model Ashley Ellerin. The year was 2001, Kutcher was 23, Ellerin was just 22.
On the night of the Grammy Awards that year, Kutcher arrived at her home to pick her up for a party. The burgeoning star got to Ellerin's home at 10 p.m., but the knockout – who previously dated actor Vin Diesel – didn't answer the door.
Kutcher peeked in a window and noticed some dark stains on the carpet. Figuring they came from spilled red wine, he left for the party alone.
Little did he know the stains were actually blood, and the next morning, Ellerin's lifeless body was discovered – pierced by nearly four dozen stab wounds.
Now, after years of delays, jury selection in the trial of her alleged killer, Michael Gargiulo, nicknamed the Hollywood Ripper, is finally underway.
Click through this RadarOnline.com gallery to learn more about the vicious murder, and Gargiulo's other alleged victims.
Nightmares
"Ashton had nightmares for years over the killing," a close friend of the A-list actor-producer told The Examiner in 2009. "It was a horrible ordeal. He grieved for years over her."
Neighbor Attacks
According to court documents, Gargiulo, an air conditioning repairman and neighbor who had previously worked in Ellerin's home, entered her house while she was showering and stabbed her 47 times.
'Brutal' Assault
"This was a brutal, frenzied assault," a source told the Globe in 2004. " There were 12 fatal wounds and 35 others stabbing, plunging, twisting. It was overkill. She fought hard to save her life, but someone wanted her dead."
Stab Wounds
A copy of the coroner's report drafted in 2001 and obtained by RadarOnline.com reveals Ellerin's butchered body was riddled with nearly 50 stab wounds, mostly on her head, neck and torso.
Tried To Fight
The back of her skull was also fractured, and there were horrific wounds to her hands and right forearm, likely caused as she desperately tried to fend off her attacker.
Arrest
After a lengthy investigation, and years on the run, Gargiulo was finally arrested in 2008 after DNA evidence linked him to the crime.
Serial Killer
He was charged with her murder. But that wasn't all—Gargiulo also confessed to be a serial killer, claiming he murdered as many as 10 other women.
Parent's Pain
Ellerin's devastated parents have long blamed Kutcher for not reporting the suspicious stains immediately and allowing Gargiulo to escape capture.
Head Start
"Because of him, the perpetrator got a 12-hour head start," Ashley's father Michael Ellerin told the Globe in 2004. "His behavior suggests he felt Ashley was a disposable date. Any reasonable gentleman who finds a door not answered and evidence of some kind of a disturbance would call the police.
Testify
Kutcher may be called to testify in the trial, forcing the comedic actor to speak out publicly for the first time about details of the case.
Tight Lipped
"He never mentions Ashley or the murder, and we never ask," a close friend told the Examiner in 2009. "At the time it happened, Ashton was totally freaked out. But he never talks about it now."