Left: Kathryn Restelli. Right: Kathryn Restelli and her husband Matthew Restelli (Law&Crime).
A woman from Utah has admitted to being involved in a plot with her family members to kill her estranged husband at their residence, attempting to present the act as self-defense, according to court documents.
Kathryn Restelli, 37, confessed to crimes including second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and first-degree felony discharge of a firearm in relation to the July 2024 death of Matthew Restelli, as outlined in the agreement. Initially, she faced a first-degree murder charge.
Weeks before the shooting on July 12, 2024, Kathryn Restelli left her husband unexpectedly in California, relocating with their children to American Fork, approximately 30 miles south of Salt Lake City, to live with her mother, Tracy Grist. During this period, she reportedly plotted with her mother and brother, Kevin Ellis, to orchestrate her husband’s murder.
As part of the alleged plot, Kathryn Restelli created a “ruse of possible reconciliation” with her husband to “lure” him to come to her home in Utah, with the intention that they would go back together to California. But, according to cops, she had no intention of doing so.
Grist allegedly told her daughter that she owned a firearm and that either she or Ellis would shoot Matthew Restelli. They also allegedly wanted to arrange it so the victim was driving his truck from California to Utah, which had an Apple AirTag hidden in the vehicle, allowing them to track him.
Restelli’s mother allegedly made some changes to the home in anticipation of her son-in-law’s arrival, prosecutors said.
“First, she removed the fabric screen door to allow easy access for Matthew. Second, she covered the couch in the living room with a blanket to avoid blood stains on the couch, according to Restelli’s admission of facts. “And third she moved all the kids’ toys from their normal location in the front room to a home office.”
Kathryn Restelli spoke with her husband several times as he made the drive, keeping him calm, prosecutors said. Just before his arrival, his wife told him to just come through the unlocked front door so he could help her gather her things. But this was part of the alleged plan to allow Grist or Ellis to say he walked into the home unannounced and uninvited, according to police.
The wife went upstairs while her mother and brother allegedly waited for the husband to come inside. When he did, Ellis fired several shots at him, prosecutors said. They then allegedly planted a knife on him.
But they made one crucial mistake.
“Matthew Restelli is left-handed, and he’s holding [the knife] in his right hand. Along with that, during the autopsy, a bullet wound was found in his right wrist … the same hand he’s holding the knife with,” American Fork police Officer Joseph Nordin testified, according to local ABC affiliate KTVX.
Restelli’s internet searches also revealed some interesting results, the station reported. Restelli was reportedly researching other \ homicide cases and “what attracts mountain lions to humans” in the days leading up to her husband’s. At the same time, her mother was allegedly doing her own online investigation about recent shootings and the state’s gun laws.
KTVX reported that Restelli cried as she entered her plea. She’s slated to be sentenced on Sept. 9.
Ellis and Grist are each charged with first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and two counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child. Ellis is also charged with the use of a firearm as a restricted person and possession or use of a controlled substance.
Both are scheduled to go on trial in January.
