Fabio Sementilli Case: Wife, Lover's Murder Trial in Slaying of Husband Moves Forward

Police arrested Fabio Sementilli's wife Monica, and her lover, Robert Baker, almost five months after the murder of the renowned hairstylist.

The famed beauty executive was brutally murdered in his backyard, with what police initially believed to have been a victim of a robbery gone wrong. Fabio Sementilli was stabbed to death.

The victim was said to have been watching TV at his Woodland Hills, California home on Jan. 23, 2017, when he was attacked from behind, suffering seven stab wounds to the neck, chest, and thigh, People reported.

Monica was believed to have helped her clandestine lover Baker to kill Fabio Sementilli.

Investigators found CCTV footage from a neighbor, which showed two unidentified men hiding their faces with their hoodies. They allegedly ransacked the couple's room and were seen speeding away with Sementilli's Porsche, which was later impounded by police a few miles from his home.

Investigation on Fabio Sementilli's Death

Initially, the detectives believed that Fabio Sementilli's death resulted from a home invasion burglary gone awry. But their investigation focused closer to home after discovering that the recording equipment and tapes from Fabio's own CCTV cameras were missing, pointing to a possibility of a planned crime.

The Cinemaholic reported that the result of the investigation was still unclear. However, it turned in a different direction after relatives and friends attended a family memorial.

Baker was present at the memorial and was introduced as a friend of Sementilli's wife, whom she had met at the gym. It attracted suspicion, and someone sent a picture of Baker at the memorial to the case investigators.

Investigators then found out that Baker was already registered in their database as a sex-offender. After that, Baker and Monica were arrested and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder together.

The Trial

During the trial, Monica was represented by celebrity lawyers Leonard Levine and Blair Berk. On the other hand, Baker was with a legal aid lawyer.

Prosecutors alleged that the lovers plotted to kill Fabio Sementilli in order to collect life insurance money worth $1.6 million. They claimed that the two suspects communicated via cell phones regarding their plan of action. They added that the focus of the hearing is on the evidence, particularly citing Monica and Baker's illicit affair.

"The testimony described numerous acts and things they engaged in. It was character evidence... it is not relevant to the issues of guilt or innocence," according to a Toronto Sun report.

The defendant's lawyer then claimed that the evidence did not meet the standard for a trial, saying that some tidbits of her relationship with Baker would harm Monica's ability to get a fair trial. However, Judge Ronald Coen slammed the defense's motions.

"In reading the transcript, it does not appear that this is as salacious as counsel points out... a case is sensational then is surpassed by the next salacious case, and on and on," Coen said in a report.

Both Monica and Baker pleaded not guilty. Earlier this year, a Superior Court judge has vetoed an attempt to drop the special circumstance allegations in the case, which came from recently appointed District Attorney George Gascon as part of his new reforms.

Fabio Sementilli's son Luigi wrote to the court, saying that justice is threatened if special circumstances were to be dropped. The trial is scheduled for April.

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