This Story Will Give You Chills From the First Minute | True Crime Documentary

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I know many of you use these episodes to fall asleep. So before you drift off, I'd love it if you could leave a comment letting me know where you're listening from around the world. Also, don't forget to like and subscribe if you're enjoying the episodes. 200 figures run at full speed through the affluent streets of Woodland Hills, California. It is 453 in the afternoon on January 23rd, 2017. The blood is still fresh on their hands. Behind them, in the backyard of a mansion worth millions of dollars, a well-known stylist is bleeding out on his own patio. He has multiple stab wounds to his neck face and chest. At that very moment, his teenage daughter is driving home from school, with no idea that she is about to walk into a nightmare that will haunt her forever. This is the story of Fabio Sementelli, a successful charismatic and respected Italian immigrant who built a true empire within the beauty industry. But above all, this is a story of absolute betrayal, a story marked by greed, obsession, and a calculated murder, organized by the person who was supposed to love him more than anyone else. January 23rd, 2017. The 9-1-1 call came in at 4.54 pm. On the other end of the line was the voice of a teenage girl trembling with absolute terror, desperate to save her father's life. 16-year-old Isabella Sementelli had just returned from school when she found her father Fabio, lying in a pool of blood in the backyard of their home. The scene was horrifying. The multiple stab wounds revealed a brutal act of violence, as paramedics rushed to the location Isabella's screams echoed throughout the neighborhood. But it was already too late. Fabio Sementelli, 49 years old, was pronounced dead. At first glance, everything seemed to indicate that it was a robbery that had ended in the worst possible way. Two hooded figures had been captured by a neighbor's security camera just minutes before the attack, jogging toward the Sementelli home at 4.18 pm. In addition, Fabio's black Porsche had disappeared from the driveway. It was later found abandoned about 8 kilometers away, with the drops of blood inside. But as investigators processed the crime scene, something did not add up. Detective Ryan Werner of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department carefully analyzed the evidence. Fabio's expensive Rolex was still intact on his wrist. His wallet remained in his pocket, untouched. Nothing else was missing from the luxurious home. There were no ransacked drawers, no emptied safes, and no signs of forced entry. The timeline was surgically precise. At 4.18 pm, security cameras captured two figures jogging toward the house. At 4.53 pm, the black Porsche sped away. At 4.54 pm, just 60 seconds later, Isabella's car pulled into the driveway. It was almost as if someone had known exactly when Fabio would be alone and vulnerable. Three days after the murder, Monica Sementelli organized a memorial service for her husband. Friends and family gathered in the very same backyard where Fabio had been brutally murdered. Morning the loss of a man who had touched many lives through his work in the beauty industry. Monica seemed devastated. She could barely form coherent sentences and repeated over and over. "I'm no longer a wife. I'm no longer a wife." Her grief seemed overwhelming, absolute, impossible to contain. But there was one person at that memorial who did not fit. Deborah Orr, a friend of Monica's noticed him immediately. He was a man she had never seen before, mingling with the grieving family. There was something about him that felt deeply out of place. He did not seem to be part of Fabio's circle of friends or colleagues. And yet there he was, offering condolences, completely out of place. And he had a bandage on the index finger of his left hand. Deborah felt so disturbed by his presence that she decided to secretly photograph him and gave the image to police. That single photograph would crack the case wide open. The mysterious man was named Robert Lewis Baker. Within weeks investigators discovered a crucial detail. Baker's DNA was already recorded in law enforcement databases. He was a registered sex offender. When they compared his DNA to the drops of blood found inside Fabio's stolen Porsche, they got a perfect match. But one question still remained. Who was Robert Baker and why would he want Fabio's sementilly dead? The answer would expose a web of lies, obsession, and betrayal that had been forming for more than a year. 53-year-old Robert Lewis Baker was not who he appeared to be. He worked as a racquetball instructor at an LA fitness in West Hills. He was charismatic, confident, magnetic. With what one person close to him described as a very dominant, very alpha male presence, and with a kind of sexual energy around him, he seemed successful, liked by those who knew him and always willing to offer advice or words of encouragement. But beneath that polished facade was a much darker truth. In 1993, Baker had been convicted of loot and lascivious acts with a minor, his own teenage stepdaughter. After serving his prison sentence, he married the victim, and the two of them eventually entered the adult film industry together. By 2016, he was working as a fitness instructor, projecting an image of respectability while his predatory past remained hidden. That was when he first saw Monica sementilly. Monica, 45 years old, represented everything Baker desperately wanted. She was elegant, sophisticated, married to a successful man, and living the comfortable lifestyle he longed for himself. She had two teenage daughters and seemed devoted to her husband, to whom she had been married for more than 20 years. According to Baker's later testimony, their affair began just weeks after they met at the gym, in early 2016. What Monica did not understand was that she had just become the obsession of a sexual predator who had already destroyed one family and was willing to destroy another. Baker immediately began isolating Monica from her normal life. He convinced her to communicate exclusively through encrypted apps like Viber and Burner phones, technologies that would allow them to hide their relationship from Fabio. Investigators would later discover that half of all Monica's communications were with Robert Baker, more than with her husband and her two daughters combined. Stop and think about that for a moment. Half of her digital life was dedicated to this man. Debra Ord, Monica's friend, began to grow suspicious in the fall of 2016. She noticed that Monica was spending more and more time at the gym, always near the same man. When she confronted her about the affair, Monica strongly denied everything. Then Debra warned Fabio to pay attention to Monica's friends at the gym. His response in hindsight was heartbreaking. Fabio completely dismissed the concern. He trusted his wife fully. After 20 years of marriage, he believed she would never betray him. If only he had known that at that very moment Robert Baker was already planning his murder. At the end of 2016, Christopher Austin traveled from Oregon to Los Angeles. His plane ticket was paid for by Robert Baker. Austin was 36 years old and worked as a parole and probation officer with at-risk youth. He considered Baker an old friend and thought he was traveling for a casual visit. Maybe some racquetball, a little California sunshine. He had absolutely no idea that he was being recruited to commit a murder. Austin would later testify that Monica invited both men to dinner at her home. She served them pizza and gave them a detailed tour of the house, paying special attention to the backyard, where Fabio liked to relax by the pool after work. She showed them the layout, the exits, and the blind spots. It was reconnaissance disguised as hospitality. Around that same time Monica contacted a security camera company to upgrade the home surveillance system. The new system allowed her to remotely access the cameras from her cell phone from anywhere and at any time. That way, she could know exactly when Fabio was alone and vulnerable at home. Baker's preparations were even more sinister. He bought GPS tracking devices and secretly placed them on Fabio's two vehicles. His everyday car and his prized black Porsche. Baker could monitor Fabio's every movement in real time, following him like prey. Austin testified that Baker told him Monica was trapped in an abusive relationship and desperately wanted Fabio gone. Baker portrayed Fabio as a controlling and violent husband who made Monica's life miserable. He presented himself as Monica's savior, the man protecting her from a dangerous situation. But Jessica Monica's daughter would later give testimony that completely destroyed that version. She described how one morning in 2016 she walked into her mother's bedroom and found Robert Baker in bed with her. This was not about rescuing Monica from abuse. It was not about protection or safety. It was about possession. Baker wanted Monica all to himself, her life, her money, her complete attention, and he was willing to kill to get it. The financial motive was shocking. Fabio had a life insurance policy worth $1.6 million. If he died, Monica would collect it all. She could start over with Baker, no complicated divorce, no custody battles, no division of assets, just a widow and her new boyfriend financed with bloodstain money. The planning phase was complete. Now they only needed the perfect opportunity. January 22, 2017, the day before the murder. Monica sent Baker a text message. Fabio was on his way to the store, according to Christopher Austin's testimony that was their first attempt to kill Fabio. Baker and Austin positioned themselves to intercept him. Weapons ready, adrenaline at its peak, but something went wrong. Austin later said that he could not go through with the attack that day. Maybe his conscience finally kicked in, or perhaps the logistics were not right. Whatever the reason Fabio returned home safe and sound that night, completely unaware that his wife had just tried to have him murdered. But Baker was not going to give up. He had already gone too far, invested too much. Monica had promised him a new life together, access to the insurance money, and freedom from his own financial problems. Baker told Austin about Monica's wealth and told him that once Fabio was gone, they could leave together and live the life they deserved. The plan was simple. Make everything look like a robbery, collect the insurance money, and start over somewhere else. That night Monica's behavior revealed her true priorities. While she comforted her daughters and played the role of a devoted wife, in her mind she was already organizing Fabio's funeral, the performance had begun, the trap was set. Fabio Sementelli had less than 24 hours left to live. January 23rd, 2017. The day that would destroy several families forever. Monica's plan required perfect timing and an impeccable alibi. That afternoon she left home in her black Ford SUV and told Fabio she was going shopping at Target. An ordinary errand, nothing suspicious. Surveillance cameras captured her SUV entering the Target parking lot around 4pm. But before Monica went into the store, someone got into her vehicle. Prosecutors believed that person was Robert Baker, who was receiving the final instructions for the murder. Then Monica went into Target, building her alibi while texting Baker that the coast was clear. Fabio was home alone. Baker received the signal and told Austin, "She's going to the store. We have a small window." Austin testified that Baker put him in the trunk of a rented Nissan and drove to a staging area near the Sementelli home. When they arrived, Baker handed Austin a knife and asked him, "Are you with me?" Austin would later tell the jury, "Like an idiot," I said yes and followed him. At 4.18pm, the two of them jogged toward the house as if they were two exercise enthusiasts going out for an afternoon run. The perfect disguise captured by several neighborhood security cameras. Austin stated that Baker told him the front door was supposed to be unlocked. "She's going to leave the door open," Baker said. When prosecutors asked who she was, Austin answered without hesitation. The defendant. The door was indeed open, exactly as planned. Fabio Sementelli was sitting calmly in the backyard, relaxing by the pool after another successful day as vice president of Wella. One of the most important beauty companies in the world. He had built an empire through his talent and determination, working with Hollywood stars and guiding young stylists who deeply admired him. He never saw them coming. Robert Baker fatally stabbed Fabio several times in the neck, face, and chest. The attack was so violent that Baker cut his own finger during the process. The same finger that would be bandaged when with chilling audacity, he showed up at Fabio's memorial just three days later. Fabio had no defensive wounds, suggesting that he was taken completely by surprise by men he had never seen before, sent by the woman who had promised to love him forever. Baker and Austin fled in Fabio's Porsche and abandoned it about eight kilometers away. The timeline was perfect, choreographed like a deadly ballet. At 453 pm, the killer's left. At 454 pm, exactly 60 seconds later, Isabella's car pulled into the driveway. Isabella's screams echoed throughout the neighborhood when she discovered her father's body and called 911. The operator guided her through her desperate attempts to save Fabio's life, but the wounds were too severe. He was already gone. Monica arrived home minutes later and found the house surrounded by patrol cars and ambulances. Her performance began immediately. When a lethal blue Monica's friend arrived at the house that night, a stranger escorted her inside with a chilling warning. Don't step in the blood. Monica seemed completely devastated. Blue remembered her sitting there, unable to form coherent sentences. "I'm no longer a wife," she repeated. "I'm no longer a wife." It became her mantra as if she were processing an unimaginable blow. But while Monica cried in public, in private she was celebrating. That very night with her husband's body not even cold, she began asking about Fabio's life insurance policy. She wanted to know when the $1.6 million would be released. Her priorities were crystal clear. The money came first. The morning was nothing more than an elaborate performance. For months, Monica maintained her facade as a victimized widow. While in secret, she continued her passionate relationship with Baker. Police surveillance captured them taking romantic trips to Las Vegas and Myrtle Beach. Monica even introduced herself to Baker's friends as Monica Baker. She was already living the fantasy of their new life together, built on her husband's blood-stained money. Monica repeatedly called Detective Jean-Parsel, but not to seek justice for her murdered husband. She asked for updates on the DNA evidence and for estimates of when the insurance money might be released. She did not seem concerned about catching Fabio's killers. She was concerned about collecting. But investigators were watching everything, documenting every movement, every phone call, every romantic encounter. And the web of lies was about to collapse. By February 2017, Robert Baker was already the prime suspect. His DNA inside Fabio's stolen Porsche was irrefutable and devastating evidence. When investigators questioned Monica about him, she claimed she barely knew him. She told Detective she was not even sure of his last name. She only knew him as Rob, a casual acquaintance from the gym. When confronted with the evidence of Baker's blood in the Porsche, Monica invented an elaborate story. She claimed that she had accidentally hit him with a racquetball racquet during a match and had brought home a bloody towel from the gym. It was an absurd, desperate explanation, and investigators did not believe it for a second. For months, they surveilled the secret lovers, documenting how their relationship continued while Monica publicly played the role of a destroyed widow. The evidence piled up. Encrypted communications on burner phones, purchases of GPS tracking devices, and most damning of all, they're ongoing romance while Fabio's body had barely grown cold. On June 14, 2017, police organized an elaborate undercover operation. Monica and Baker were stopped under the pretext of a routine traffic stop. Officers claimed that the vehicle might be stolen and that they needed to inspect it. Both suspects were handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car equipped with recording devices. What they said to each other in that moment would later be used against them at trial. They were then arrested and formally charged with conspiracy to commit murder and first-degree murder. As they were processed in custody, the full weight of the evidence against them began to be cut off. come clear. Monica was also placed with an undercover officer pretending to be her cellmate. There, she confessed. He's not just my lover. He's my confidant. He's my everything. Even behind bars, their twisted love story continued. Police intercepted letters sent from jail in which Monica signed as Mrs. Baker and Monica Baker. In one particularly disturbing letter, she wrote, "It hurts a little not being touched or licked or loved by you." In recorded jail conversations, Baker told Monica, "I love you, baby. I really do." They were so obsessed with each other that they continued planning their future together, even while facing murder charges. The delusion was total. Monica's semantilly's trial began with the devastating testimony of Christopher Austin, the probation officer who had helped commit the murder. In exchange for a plea deal, Austin agreed to testify against Monica. His testimony was devastating. He described the reconnaissance mission disguised as a dinner invitation and how Monica had specifically shown them the backyard where Fabio would later die. He also recounted Baker's promises about the insurance money. But in a surprising twist, Robert Baker testified in Monica's defense. In an apparent attempt to savor, he claimed she knew nothing about the murder plan. Baker insisted that he had acted alone because he was obsessed with her, because he wanted her to be near him and with him more often practically all the time. Baker's testimony created some reasonable doubt, but prosecutors had an overwhelming amount of circumstantial evidence. The GPS tracking devices, the unlocked door, the perfectly timed target alibi, the immediate questions about the insurance money, the romantic trips while Fabio's family was still grieving his death. Everything pointed to Monica as the mastermind. Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman told the jury that the case at its core was about betrayal. Monica had deceived everyone, her husband, her daughters, her friends, the investigators. She had organized every detail of the murder. The prosecution presented a particularly powerful argument about Monica's behavior after the crime. That night she left her teenage daughters at home, apparently unconcerned about the dangerous robbers who had supposedly just killed their father. Why? Because there was no real danger. She knew exactly who the killers were. Monica's defense attorney argued that she was guilty of stupidity, duplicity, lies and adultery, but not murder. He maintained that she was simply a foolish woman trapped in an affair, manipulated by Baker's obsession. The jury would have to decide. Was Monica an innocent victim of Baker's fixation? Or was she the calculating mind who organized the brutal murder of her husband for money and passion? On April 11, 2025, after eight hours of deliberation spread over three days, the jury reached a verdict. Guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, with special circumstances of murder for financial gain and premeditated stalking, charges that carried mandatory life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On June 23, 2025, Monica semitilly was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The judge expressly stated, "In listening to the evidence in this case, I find that the defendant was the mastermind in this conspiracy to commit murder." Robert Baker had already been sentenced to life in prison without parole after pleading not guilty, but not contesting the charges. Christopher Austin received a sentence of 16 years to life for his cooperation with prosecutors. Monica semitilly traded twenty years of marriage, her family's future, and her freedom for a fantasy built on blood and betrayal. Her daughters lost both parents, one to murder, the other to greed and obsession. Now they must move forward knowing that their mother organized their father's death. Luigi Fabio's son from his first marriage keeps his father's Rolex close to him. "He wore it all the time," Luigi says. "He was wearing it when he died. I wear it on special occasions when I want to feel close to him." That Rolex, the same one the killers could easily have stolen but left behind, became a symbol of what this case was never really about. It was not about a robbery, it was not about watches, wallets or material possessions. It was about a woman who wandered everything. Passion, excitement, money, a new life. And she was willing to destroy her family to get it. Fabio semitilly had built a beautiful life through effort and determination. He mentored young stylus, worked with Hollywood stars, and deeply loved his family. Today several scholarships and educational programs bear his name, ensuring that his legacy of kindness continues. But his life was taken at 49 years old by the person who knew him best, loved him the least, and wandered his money the most. In the end, Monica got exactly what she wanted, a life with Robert Baker, just not the life she had imagined. Instead of luxury vacations and insurance money, both of them will spend the rest of their lives in separate cells. Their twisted romance has been reduced to monitored phone calls and letters read by guards. This case serves as a chilling reminder that the greatest danger can come from those closest to us. From the person who sleeps beside us, shares our home, raises our children, and promises to love us until death do us part. Sometimes they mean it far more literally than we could ever imagine. Thank you for joining us on Unreal True Crime. If mysteries from different parts of the world intrigue you, visit our new channel, Latin Crimes, where we explore shocking True Crime stories from Latin America. Don't miss it. Subscribe now for more chilling investigations.