Wife found guilty in plot to fatally stab hairdresser husband Fabio Sementilli for financial gain

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. (TCN) -- The wife of prominent hairdresser Fabio Sementilli has been convicted in the 2017 plot to kill him in the home they shared with their daughters.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced April 11 that a jury found Monica Sementilli guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit murder and murder with special circumstance allegations that the killing was carried out for financial gain and by means of lying in wait. She is scheduled to be sentenced on June 23 and faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Prosecutors said Monica Sementilli and her co-defendant, Robert Baker, were "involved in a romantic affair and conspired to kill 49-year-old Fabio Sementilli."

On Jan. 23, 2017, Fabio Sementilli was sitting on the patio when Baker fatally stabbed him and fled the scene in the victim’s Porsche. The vehicle was reportedly found abandoned just miles away.

According to KABC-TV, investigators originally believed it was a home invasion gone wrong, but they later named Monica Sementilli and Baker the primary suspects. Baker is reportedly a convicted sex offender and former porn star.

Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman argued that the victim’s wife plotted Fabio Sementilli’s death so she could inherit his estate and continue her relationship with Baker, KABC reports. Silverman also allegedly said Baker and Monica Sementilli destroyed evidence to hide their plan.

Baker previously pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

KTTV-TV reports that a third suspect, Christopher Austin, helped Baker in the stabbing. He pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and faces 16 years to life in prison.

"True Crime News" has been closely following the case since early in the year.

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