Fabio Sementilli, 49

Fabio Sementilli, a 49-year-old white man, was found fatally stabbed Monday, Jan. 23, in the 5000 block of Queen Victoria Road in Woodland Hills, according to police and Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

About 5 p.m., officers responded to a medical emergency call and found Sementilli on his patio “with injuries to his face and significant blood,” said Officer Liliana Preciado, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Sementilli had sustained numerous stab wounds to his neck and upper torso, according to police. He was unconscious and not breathing when authorities arrived and was pronounced dead at the scene, Preciado said. 

Sementilli’s car, a black 2008 Porsche Carrera 911, was missing, Preciado said. The vehicle had paper plates. Police later found the vehicle, and the case remains under investigation.

Sementilli, who was born in Canada, was a vice president of education for the cosmetics giant Coty Inc., according to Modern Salon magazine.  

“Sementilli mentored tens of thousands of hairdressers with a hands-on approach either on a one-to-one basis or on a grander scale,” Modern Salon wrote.

Last week, Sementilli posted a photograph of his 1987 hairstylist certification on Facebook. It was the 30-year anniversary of his first certification in the field, and he reminisced in the post about how his career started with optimism and a strong work ethic and how many people had helped him along the way.

“I’ve never been a glass half empty kind of guy,” he wrote. “I’m optimistic, I’m driven and I don’t accept the habit of negativity around me. I don’t sit on the fence and with this conviction I conduct myself everyday to ensure Hair and Nail Professionals everywhere can build a successful and sustainable career!”

Anyone with information is asked to call LAPD Det. Steve Castro at (818) 374-1925. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @latimeshomicide on Twitter.