HUDSON, Fla. — The murder suspect in the case of a missing Pasco County family told detectives that the bodies of all four family members were burned in his fire pit, according to an arrest affidavit.
The document reveals new details in the missing persons case-turned-death investigation of Rain Mancini, 26; Phillip Zilliot II, 25; Karma Zilliot, 6; and Phillip Zilliot III, 5.
Thursday, June 13: Deputies receive a call about 'adult and child bodies'
On Thursday, June 13, Pasco County deputies said they received a call from a woman claiming that 25-year-old Rory Atwood FaceTimed her brother asking for help burning trash. The brother reportedly saw a puddle of blood and "adult and child bodies" in the background of the video call.
This information led deputies to Atwood's home on Nottingham Trail in Hudson. Atwood told detectives he last saw the Mancini/Zilliot family at their shared home on June 12, according to the affidavit. Deputies said they didn't find anything suspicious at the home but noted that the fire pit was "smoldering and smoking."
Friday, June 14: Cadaver dog finds human remains
On Friday, June 14, deputies said they received a call from another person who told them Atwood admitted to killing his roommates and their children, the Mancini/Zilliot family.
Deputies returned to Atwood's home that same day. On this visit, Atwood told them he evicted the family two weeks prior for not paying rent.
The affidavit says another detective interviewed Atwood who told them they "might find horse bones" on the property and asked how fast human flesh would decompose.
Deputies, cadaver dogs and forensic scientists searched the home again — this time they reportedly found:
- signs of "intense heat" from a fire in the backyard
- the missing family's belongings
- "small skeletal remains" and human "soft tissue" the cadaver dog pulled from the fire pit
- "human long bone fragments" and "apparent human vertebrae" on the surface of the fire pit
Detectives also noted that the cadaver dog showed a change in behavior on the house's front porch, possibly indicating that it "smelled a diluted odor or couldn't pinpoint the exact locations of human remains."
Friday, June 14: Witnesses say Atwood admitted he "killed them"
Detectives interviewed several people who knew Atwood and the Mancini/Zilliot family.
One man, who said he had been friends with Atwood and Phillip Zilliot II since high school, reportedly told detectives Atwood called him around 2 a.m. on June 13, asking for help and saying he "killed them" in reference to Rain and Phillip.
A woman said she was at Atwood's house on June 12 and remembered Rain Mancini sitting on a yellow or beige couch. She also said she knows Atwood stores firearms on beams by the house's front door, according to the affidavit. When she watched the deputy's bodycam footage from June 14, she noticed that the couch was missing.
According to the affidavit, the mother of Atwood's 4-year-old daughter told detectives Atwood picked up their daughter the night of June 12 but called her "panicked" at 2:57 a.m. saying he needed to bring their daughter back after some sort of altercation.
Saturday, June 15: Atwood reportedly admits to killing Rain and Phillip
After previously denying any involvement in their deaths, Atwood told detectives the bodies of Rain Mancini, Phillip Zilliot II, Karma Zilliot and Phillip Zilliot III were burned in the fire pit on his property, the affidavit says.
According to the document, Atwood detailed a physical altercation he said he had with Rain Mancini and Phillip Zilliot II on either June 12 or June 13. During this reported altercation, Atwood claims he and Phillip Zilliot II were struggling over a firearm when Rain Mancini was shot in the torso and head. Atwood said as the struggle continued, Phillip Zilliot II was shot twice in the head.
Atwood reportedly told detectives that both Rain and Phillip died in his living room. He also said he suspected that Rain and Phillip had killed their own children but could not say how.
RELATED: Missing person's case leads deputies to find 2 bodies, arrest couple for murder, sheriff says
Saturday, June 15: Atwood tells detectives all 4 bodies were burned
Atwood said "he used 'adrenaline' to drag Rain and Phillip from the living room, out the front door, and to the fire pit located on the property," the affidavit reads.
According to detectives, Atwood also said he burned the yellow couch because of "blood evidence" and burned anything he may have used to clean up the house.
Detectives said Atwood did not have any significant injuries from a burn or physical altercation.
According to the affidavit, Atwood admitted his involvement in the deaths of Rain Mancini and Phillip Zilliot II and admitted to knowledge that both kids were also burned in the same fire pit.
Atwood was arrested on the afternoon of June 15 and charged with premeditated first-degree murder.