Jail love affair reveals evidence of murder conspiracy, prosecutors say

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CASE UPDATE: On April 11, 2025, a assemblage recovered Monica Sementill, 53, guilty of execution and conspiracy for masterminding the execution of her hubby Fabio, with peculiar circumstances of execution for fiscal summation and execution portion lying successful wait.

When Monica Sementilli and Robert Baker were arrested and accused of a execution conspiracy to termination Monica's husband, Fabio Sementilli, 49, their emotion matter continued successful jailhouse according to documents revealed successful a "48 Hours" probe of the case. Prosecutors allege their ongoing emotion matter down bars, including recordings made during constabulary sting operations, correspond further grounds of a committed execution conspiracy betwixt the lovebirds.

"It benignant of hurts to not beryllium touched oregon f***** oregon licked oregon loved by you," Monica, present 52, writes successful 1 four-page missive to her codefendant. Baker, present 61, is blunt, recorded addressing Sementilli successful lockup months aft their arrest, "I emotion you baby. I truly do."

Monica Sementilli and Robert Baker mugshots

On June 14, 2017, Baker and Monica were arrested and yet indicted for Fabio's execution and conspiracy to perpetrate murder. Baker pleaded nary contest in July 2023, accepting a beingness condemnation without parole. Monica volition basal proceedings unsocial successful April; she has pleaded not guilty. Their lawsuit is profiled by "48 Hours" contributor Michelle Miller successful "The Monica Sementilli Affair" present streaming connected Paramount+.

On the time of their arrest, according to a signaling released by police, Monica tells a cellmate however overmuch Baker means to her: "He's not conscionable my lover, he's my confidant, he's my everything."

Police engaged successful an elaborate bid of sting operations to proceed to analyse the alleged conspiracy betwixt the defendants adjacent portion they were held successful custody, "48 Hours" has discovered. Police alternately utilized modular and originative means to intercept oregon grounds the defendants' interactions and statements, each of which is being offered arsenic grounds of conspiracy successful Monica's upcoming trial.

For instance, "48 Hours" has confirmed that the cellmate to whom Monica spoke erstwhile she was archetypal detained was an undercover constabulary serviceman posing arsenic an inmate to drawback Monica speaking candidly connected surreptitious recordings. Police telephone these types of jailhouse setups wherever officers airs arsenic inmates wrong jailhouse Perkins Operations, referring to the lawsuit instrumentality which guides however these in-jail, sting operations are conducted.

In the people of our investigation, "48 Hours" has learned that constabulary went to adjacent greater lengths than utilizing undercover officers wrong cells to ensnare Monica and Baker. As the 2 defendants were brought to courtrooms for their archetypal pre-trial hearings, detectives made arrangements for them to beryllium held successful adjoining cells anterior to the hearings.

Monica Sementilli and Robert Baker successful court.

Waiting successful adjacent cells to beryllium brought into the courtroom, Monica and Baker had an accidental to talk straight to each other. On six antithetic occasions, archetypal astatine the Van Nuys Courthouse and past astatine the downtown Los Angeles transgression courthouse, interactions betwixt Monica and Baker were recorded.

Beyond the sting operations, detectives besides intercepted jailhouse letters, referred to by inmates arsenic "kites," and listened to recorded jailhouse telephone calls to found facts astir the enduring emotion matter betwixt Monica and Baker.

"48 Hours" has obtained copies of 3 antithetic jailhouse emotion letters written from Monica to Baker which we person learned constabulary intercepted portion Monica intended to walk them to Baker successful courthouse holding cells. "48 Hours" has learned that the detectives discovered the letters successful holding cells portion Monica and Baker attended the hearings. The detectives hastily made copies earlier cautiously returning them for the inmates to retrieve aft the hearings truthful that the defendants were unaware the emotion letters had been intercepted and copied.

Meanwhile, Monica's defence has repeatedly argued, "the intersexual and romanticist details of their matter were simply irrelevant to the question whether they conspired to execution Fabio Sementilli."

According to prosecutors the accusation gleaned from these operations establishes that the ongoing jailhouse emotion matter is further grounds of the execution conspiracy betwixt the accused.

"In essence, the defendants person promised 1 different that neither volition cooperate with instrumentality enforcement oregon attest against the different to prevention themselves. Rather, they person promised 1 different that neither volition cooperate with instrumentality enforcement oregon attest against the different to prevention themselves," wrote Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman.

The antithetic concern wherever the 2 inmates could talk to each different portion detained was designed by instrumentality enforcement purposely to grounds conversations betwixt the unwitting defendants.

Monica Sementilli and Robert Baker utilized concealed codification to explicit emotion and committedness wrong jail, prosecutors mention arsenic grounds of execution conspiracy

According to a 2021 question filed by the prosecutor, the recordings and intercepted emotion letters are grounds of an ongoing "secrecy pact" betwixt the accused.

"The defendants often communicated with 1 different utilizing cryptic language, phrases and codes created successful bid to secretly pass without instrumentality enforcement's knowledge," including, "the phrases, 'OMM,' '9pm,' 'LOML,' and '100,'" according to a prosecution filing.

Prosecutors allege these coded phrases found the defendants' emotion and committedness not lone to each other, but besides the "conspiracy" and "secrecy pact" betwixt them. "OMM," they allege, means "On My Mind," portion they accidental "9pm" is simply a notation to a secretive program to interruption jailhouse rules and acceptable timing for a telephone telephone wherever a 3rd enactment volition link the 2 to talk directly. The prosecutors contend "LOML" is an "acronym meaning 'Love of My Life' and '100' indicates their 100% committedness to 1 another."

According to prosecutors, different important operation is the 1 written astatine the extremity of 1 of Monica's emotion letters, "R oregon D," an alleged abbreviation for the operation "Ride oregon Die."

Robert Baker Ride oregon Die cellphone mage

Detectives recovered a drafting "depicting a mates embracing 1 different wearing lone underwear and skis masks portion holding guns" successful Baker's cellphone "entitled 'Ride oregon Die.'" There is simply a connection supra the drawing, "A narration wherever you some love, support and spoil each different is the best."

"The operation 'Ride oregon Die' was often utilized betwixt the defendants arsenic an look of their committedness to 1 different and their secrecy pact. On respective occasions defendants expressed that they would stay loyal to 1 another, and ne'er 'talk' to instrumentality enforcement astir their conspiracy; successful their words, they would 'Ride oregon Die' for 1 another," the 2021 filing asserts.

Robert Baker and Monica Sementilli allegedly play enactment games during recorded jailhouse encounters arranged and recorded by police

The 2 lovers took vantage of six rendezvous engineered by detectives, according to motions filed successful court. Monica and Baker were recorded "talking to 1 different and engaging successful masturbation and different enactment games," wrote the prosecutor. The justice has ruled the alleged enactment games portions of these recordings volition not beryllium admissible. Nevertheless, these encounters purportedly uncover the passionate quality of their continuing narration successful jail.

Baker confirmed the enactment games during an exclusive jailhouse interrogation with "48 Hours" connected March 2. That's what happens erstwhile you are stuck successful here, helium said, gesturing to the jailhouse broadside of the solid from wherever helium talked to a newsman implicit a phone.

Once those encounters stopped, the jailhouse co-defendants and lovebirds recovered ways to interruption the rules and stay successful contact, according to prosecutors. In that 2021 filing, prosecutors said "over the people of the past 4 years, the defendants made hundreds of calls done 3rd parties … This allows them to talk to 1 another."

These telephone recordings person been shared with the defence arsenic find but person not been made public.

In excerpts reviewed by "48 Hours" from 2 of the six recorded encounters, determination is speech of marriage, and successful her letters, Monica consistently refers to herself arsenic "Mrs. Baker," "Monica Baker" and "your wifey." "MB" is simply a codification prosecutors allege is an abbreviation of Monica Baker.

"The defendants person continued to notation to 1 different arsenic hubby and woman portion successful custody for murdering Sementilli's morganatic husband," wrote the prosecutor, who cites this arsenic dedication, not lone to each other, but besides to their execution conspiracy.

Before the expansive jury, authoritative Silverman argued that the lovers' committedness motivated the conspiracy, saying they were "plotting to termination [Fabio] successful bid to cod his important beingness security monies and beryllium capable to unrecorded hopefully happily ever after."

Monica's attorneys person repeatedly challenged the grounds of a emotion matter arsenic irrelevant to proving grounds of a execution conspiracy. There is nary doubt, however, that Monica and Baker's committedness to their matter endured astatine slightest during the aboriginal months successful jail, adjacent for years according to the prosecutor.

"We volition get joined … You are the cleanable woman for me. Beyond belief. My caput is like, I'm delirious," Baker says to Monica successful a lockup recording.

Similarly, she gushes to her person arsenic she ends a three-page-long letter, oregon "kite," intercepted connected Aug. 6, 2017, with "Love your wifey… Monica Baker 'til death. R oregon D"

In jailhouse sting, Robert Baker mentions Monica Sementilli facing "difficulty" of being "disowned" for loving and wanting to wed him

"48 Hours" has identified 1 remark relating to this alleged jailhouse matrimony speech that whitethorn bespeak a abstracted contented astatine play successful the execution conspiracy allegations.

During the expansive assemblage hearings, authoritative Silverman argued divorcement was not an enactment for Monica, truthful the mates alternatively turned to murder.

"She's from an Italian family, which means Catholic. They don't judge successful divorce, her household won't, it won't beryllium casual for them to instrumentality it … So again this provides a motive," said Silverman.

Monica's defence attorneys person challenged this grounds arsenic flimsy and misinterpreted, insisting the authoritative has not established that divorcement troubled Monica.

However, successful 1 of the recorded conversations betwixt Baker and Monica connected Aug. 31, 2017, which constabulary notation to arsenic "lockup overhears," Baker seems to marque a stunning admittance regarding Monica portion they sermon their tendency to get married.

"So, erstwhile you gonna archer them … erstwhile you … erstwhile you gonna archer them … however we gonna archer 'em we're gonna get married? How we gonna bash this? Then you'll truly beryllium officially disowned for loving somebody," Baker says successful a seeming notation to Monica getting disowned for their relationship. Monica responds, "I don't cognize … I deliberation we whitethorn request to hold … until the trial, and spot what happens with that."

Baker past says, "I'm not the 1 that has the, trouble you do."

The transcript made nationalist successful the prosecutor's question is lone an incomplete excerpt of the conversation. Nevertheless, this information of the jailhouse speech recorded by the Los Angeles Police Department seems to found that Monica being "disowned" implicit her emotion for Baker whitethorn person been an contented for the lovers. Furthermore, Baker seems to corroborate it arsenic a "difficulty" for Monica. It is simply a tantalizing portion of a conversation, raising a important contented that volition astir surely travel into play during her trial.

Monica's defence attorneys "are not commenting connected immoderate grounds until it is presented astatine trial," said seasoned L.A. transgression defence lawyer Leonard Levine.

Although it is unclear if the 2 defendants stay successful interaction today, aft six years of incarceration, grounds appears to show the stunning revelation they remained dedicated to a narration successful the months aft their arrest, possibly extending for years. These emotion letters, enactment games and promises look to person continued adjacent aft Monica learned that grounds implicated Baker arsenic her husband's killer.

In an exclusive jailhouse interrogation with "48 Hours," Baker claimed that present the 2 are prevented from contacting each other. He said, the past clip they spoke, successful a random brushwood passing each different successful lockup, she cursed him arsenic a murderer. He did not bespeak erstwhile this speech occurred.

Calling Baker a murderer would correspond a important crook successful Monica's attitude, arsenic evidenced done August 2017 successful the jailhouse letters and recordings. In his interrogation with "48 Hours," Baker claimed that Monica took nary portion successful a execution conspiracy and that helium acted without her knowledge.

Prosecutors disregard the thought that Monica was not involved, detailing 56 overt acts which they reason represent the conspiracy betwixt the 2 lovers to execution the personage hairstylist turned quality manufacture executive.

Monica's defence attorneys mean to telephone Baker arsenic a witnesser during Monica's trial.

"We are assured that Robert Baker's blameworthy plea and his truthful grounds volition yet found erstwhile and for each that Monica Sementilli had thing to bash with the readying oregon the execution of Fabio Sementilli, her husband," said Levine aft Baker's sentencing.

Whether oregon not Monica Sementilli's emotion matter with slayer Robert Baker constitutes grounds of a transgression conspiracy oregon simply passionate infidelity volition beryllium astatine the bosom of Fabio's wife's proceedings for his murder. Prosecutors program to participate details of that emotion matter dating arsenic acold backmost arsenic 1 twelvemonth earlier the crime, continuing aft Fabio's murder, and arsenic revealed by "48 Hours"' investigation, adjacent portion the 2 were locked up awaiting trial.

On April 11, 2025, a assemblage recovered Monica Sementilli, 53, guilty of execution and conspiracy for masterminding the execution of her hubby Fabio, with peculiar circumstances of execution for fiscal summation and execution portion lying successful wait. On June 23, 2025, Monica Sementilli was sentenced to beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole. She plans to appeal.

Greg Fisher is simply a improvement shaper for "48 Hours." He has covered the Fabio Sementilli lawsuit since 2017.

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