In a harrowing case out of Pasco County, Florida, Rory Atwood, 25, is facing four counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Rain Mancini, 26, Phillip Zilliot II, 25, and their two young children, Karma Zilliot, 6, and Phillip Zilliot III, 5. According to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, the family was killed in the early hours of June 13 following an argument at Atwood’s home on his 10-acre property in Hudson.

A newly-filed probable cause affidavit details a grim narrative. On June 17, a friend of Atwood told deputies he was summoned to Atwood's house on the morning of June 13 with a bottle of bleach. Upon arrival, he found the porch washed and Atwood asleep in a recliner. Atwood claimed he had killed Mancini and Zilliot II in self-defense after they attacked him following the murder of their own children. Atwood said he disarmed them of a 9 mm gun and shot them.

The friend later discovered Mancini's body near a firepit, wrapped in a rug, with her legs protruding. A child’s foot, adorned with pink and purple nail polish, was visible in the debris. In a subsequent interview on June 20, the friend revealed that Atwood admitted to finding the children in the laundry room hours after he shot their parents. He confessed to shooting the 5-year-old boy in the head because he “felt bad” seeing him convulsing.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office conducted a welfare check on June 13 after a report of a disturbing FaceTime call showing what appeared to be bodies. Although deputies noticed a smoldering burn pit, they initially found nothing suspicious, and Atwood denied knowledge of the family's whereabouts, claiming they had been evicted on June 1st.
The investigation intensified when deputies, prompted by a tip from another of Atwood’s friends, returned with a cadaver dog on June 14. The dog uncovered human remains, including a child's foot and bone fragments, in the fire pit, which showed signs of an intense blaze. Investigators also found evidence that the porch had been cleaned with chlorine.
At a press conference on June 15, Sheriff Chris Nocco expressed his sorrow, particularly for the children, whom he believed to be dead. The affidavit states that Atwood initially denied killing the family but later confessed, claiming self-defense. However, deputies found no injuries on Atwood that supported his story. He eventually admitted to burning all four bodies in the fire pit.
Atwood is currently held at the Pasco County Jail without bond.
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