Dog finds bone in fire pit on property where missing family was staying, Florida cops say

A dog pulled a human bone out of a fire pit that was later said to contain the bodies of a missing family of four, according to Florida authorities.

Rory Atwood, 25, is charged with murder in connection with the disappearances of a mother, father and two children who were living with him, the Pasco Sheriff’s Office said.

McClatchy News reached out to the public defender’s office for comment on June 17 but did not immediately receive a response.

Deputies said they received a call for a welfare check June 13 on 26-year-old Rain Mancini, 25-year-old Phillip Zilliot II, 5-year-old Phillip Zilliot III and 6-year-old Karma Zilliot.

“The caller (said) her brother received a call from the defendant, Rory Atwood, who requested help burning trash,” deputies wrote in a complaint affidavit. “The brother stated he observed a puddle of blood and could see adult and child bodies over the video phone call.”

Deputies reported they visited Atwood’s property in Hudson, but he initially denied knowing anything about the deaths. He told deputies he had evicted the family for not paying rent on June 1, then they dropped by the evening of June 12, investigators said.

Ultimately, deputies didn’t find anything suspicious on the property and left. Then a second call about the family’s deaths came in June 14.

A man said Atwood called him and told him he killed his roommates and their kids, deputies said.

Later that day, investigators returned to Atwood’s property, this time with a cadaver dog. The dog approached the large fire pit in the backyard and pulled out a human bone with tissue still attached, deputies said.

Forensics investigators said they found other burned bone fragments and human vertebrae.

Then yet another report came in.

One of Atwood’s friends told a detective that he got a FaceTime call at around 2 a.m. on June 13 from Atwood saying he “killed them,” elaborating that he killed the two parents during an argument.

Atwood was arrested June 15, and during another interview with investigators, he told them the family members’ bodies were all in the fire pit, deputies said.

He said Mancini and Zilliot attacked him in his bedroom with a knife, then the three of them struggled over the knife as well as a gun in the room, leading to Mancini being shot multiple times, he told investigators.

He said he also shot Zilliot, who fell onto the couch, deputies said.

In a burst of “adrenaline,” Atwood said he threw the adults’ bodies, the couch and the gun into the fire pit, deputies said.

But he denied killing the children, saying he suspected the parents were responsible.

In a June 15 news conference, Pasco Sheriff Chris Nocco said the medical examiner hadn’t yet identified who the remains belonged to, so Atwood was charged with homicide of John Doe.

Pasco County is on Florida’s Gulf Coast and is part of the Tampa Bay area.

This story was originally published June 17, 2024 at 12:13 PM with the headline "Dog finds bone in fire pit on property where missing family was staying, Florida cops say."