Episode 355

Sort and scale contains adult themes and violence and is not intended for all audiences Listener discretion is advised And I looked and I can see my mom lay on the floor I pushed the door open and I went to check her to see She was dead and I turned and I saw my father and there was blood everywhere This is season 13 episode 355 of sword and scale a show that reveals that the worst monsters are real You Riverview, Florida is a quiet suburb outside of Tampa. That's built around routine work days church Services and family businesses that have been passed down for decades But in November of 2015 that routine was broken Inside an interview room at the Hillsboro County Sheriff's Office Homicide detectives spoke with a middle-aged woman named Michelle Best Oh Derek and I get a regular time every morning We were sitting there having coffee. We're just a few minutes away from getting up to go start getting ready for work And I got up and just picked up myself one to look at the time and it was ringing in And when I answered it he was crying and said you need to get over to mom and dad's now And I said what happened he says you need to go here now And we live right across the street. So put some make sure clothes on and I walked over Michelle told detectives that on the morning of November 12th She received a frantic phone call from her oldest brother Robert He told her to hurry to her parents house a house that sat just across the street from her own Their parents were 69-year-olds surely best and 70-year-old Virgil best. They've been married forty forty-five years Other than normal marital differences any marital issues No, did they grow up here in the Tampa Bay area? My father grew up very poor In Manatee County, okay, I get a parish area and then my mom Grope hearing and Gibson to actually her father was a fish farmer for 30 some one year or so So she's been in fish farming her whole life Shirley and Virgil owned an operated quality fins fish farm a family business that ran across the five acres of land Between their home. They have fish ponds out here and they raise and sail fish So this that I'm looking at yeah, it's running me. Those are all that's all his property All all of that it runs deep way back there into the width and length, okay Virgil handled most of the day-to-day labor on the fish farm and he also employed his 21-year-old grandson to keep it running Him and ony my grandma. I call him Papa and ony They own the fish farm and and Papa is normally out there working on it and ony is Counting up fish and helping him with it, but Papa does most of the work. So I work with him Shirley and Virgil were also devout Christians who were heavily involved in their local church They attended services every Wednesday and Sunday and Shirley saying in the church choir They're big in the church. They go to Gibson to in Baptist She's in the choir. They're always involved in the church. They have been for the last few year a couple years Okay, did you see them coming in going last night to church? Because we were in the house, okay Alongside their faith, Shirley and Virgil were also firm supporters of the second amendment They were comfortable with firearms and guns were common in their home. Tell me about their guns Papa always has guns near him. He has a gun on his nightstand and I'm pretty sure he has a gun Not on his hip, but in the couch Where does she keep her gun? She I think she just bought a gun Um a brand new one and she keeps it in her purse Or does she keep it in the house, do you know the sooner as you walk in oh as soon as you walk into your left There's like bibles sitting there and it's right next to the Bible Those are people that practically sit with guns in their laps Why what happened something happened on the bus? No, they're just really country. They they are very old-time Believe in the second amendment people Well, they had deep ties to their church and strong beliefs about guns Nothing mattered more to Virgil and Shirley than their three children Robert Todd and Michelle Todd and Michelle lived close by So close that all of their properties were connected my sister myself and my parents back yard come together Okay, go around the corner is my sister and me Okay, so a lot more backyards. Okay. Yeah So when when you leave the house do you have do you see their house every morning every morning? So I want you to think about this morning Was there anything on this morning? Yes, why I left my house like I always do the same time Always look at their house. I just always look at the house I noticed the the Live room light on the live room light was on I thought I was all right because they always they always turn the lights off when they get a bit and This was on and my first thought was okay Well, maybe just good sleepening both got up early for some reason You know, I didn't thank too much of it at that time I still didn't until I you know my sister called me this morning. Okay Virgil and Shirley were also close to their children's spouses Especially Michelle's husband Derek and maybe issues going on. Oh God. No love that man I would do anything for him advice versa. We just We just worked on my gene About three weeks ago and he held me And we we do Jeep events together. We We have no problems. Okay, and what about their relationship as a husband or wife any issues and no they love just like She loved him she adored him The only one of Shirley and Virgil's children who didn't live right next to them was their oldest son 49-year-old Robert best Even so he did live nearby Just about 10 minutes away My parents are very private There's not too many people that go over there. They're very security conscious. They're kind of a constitutionalist You know, seems they are preppers any marital issues between them. I don't believe so. I think it's very happy to me As Shirley and Virgil looked ahead to life in their 70s They started talking with their children about selling the fish farm and finally retiring Their finances were fine. I mean the farm has been slow. They've been talking the next couple years of retiring Selling the farm both your grandson are very busy. They were they worked very hard. Yeah, they worked very hard their whole life They're Very hard workers. They're our entire life. They busted their butt Nothing make good people Do they have any enemies that you're aware of? No, my parents were very involved in church Everyone loved them According to their children grandchildren in laws and friends Virgil and Shirley were kind well-liked people with no known enemies Don't we hear that a lot? Your knowledge anybody had issues work. No, sir. That's my knowledge at all I mean the neighbors now they're the sweetest in people in the world Okay, sweetest people in the world. They do anything for anybody. I Can I could see her all day long and go on about how great they are and Who's loved by everybody? Absolutely everybody, especially family Friends and Adler's church goers on the morning of November 12, 2015 Michelle Best was called to her parents house by her older brother Robert not long after that call deputies arrived at the property in Michelle and her husband We're left to deliver devastating news to Virgil and Shirley's grandson Then I see mom and Derek start walking over here and you know they can barely speak. I mean they're they're fibergasted and they say I say what's going on and Derek says nothing but he just you know You're not going to school today, and then right after he says that mom and mom says papa nani have been shot And I say oh my god, and then mom said I got to get back over there So we all just got up and went over there That morning the bodies of Virgil and Shirley were reportedly discovered by their oldest son Robert Who was quickly questioned by a detective at the scene? What I'd like you to do is just gonna tell me walk me through This morning and what we got going on here My parents had asked us yesterday if we could stop by this morning on our way into court I have a court hearing today and they wanted to pray with us So my wife I found I came over, I got here, I saw that they were up, the lights were on and everything. I went around back, because we always used the back door and when I went to knock on the door, I noticed that it was just open a little bit and I could see through the curtains a little bit and I saw my mom laying on the floor. I opened the door and went to check on her and I saw there was blood, I wanted to take her pulse but there was so much blood and I could tell she was dead and I turned around, I saw my father laying on the floor too. I left and I called you guys. Robert explained that after finding his parents dead on their living room floor, he quickly went outside, spoke briefly with his wife, called his sister and then dialed 9-1-1. "1-1, what is your emergency?" "We've had a break in my parent's house and both my parents are dead." "Do you know how the heavy heavy was made into the house?" "The name of the house?" "No, I don't know, I just came over, we were supposed to have caught through with my parents when I came over and the back door is open." "Do you want them to call the MS or?" "No, let's check them." "Where are they in the house?" "The living room." During the 9-1-1 call and his interview with detectives, Robert described the scene as "bloody." It was. Virgil and Shirley Best had been "gunned down" in their living room and detectives quickly determined they were dealing with a double homicide. When the work on this case started, the detectives did what they always do. They looked at the people closest to the victims. In this case, they didn't have to look very far. The question wasn't whether the killer was close to Virgil and Shirley Best, it was which one of their children had committed this horrific crime. By the morning of November 12, 2015, two members of the Best Family were dead, and homicide detectives were left trying to understand how a quiet home in Riverview, Florida, became a violent and bloody crime scene. The victims had reportedly been shot and found inside their living room by their oldest son, Robert. "70-year-old Virgil Best and 69-year-old Shirley were found at 615 AM in their home by a family member who called 9-1-1." Crime scene techs arrived in droves to the five-acre property that contains a fish farm outback, the Best's own quality fins, a tropical fish business. Deputies will only use the police speak of upper body trauma to say how they died. "We're going to keep it very general right now because we're still very early in the investigation." Deputies are trying to figure out who lasts all the couple alive and when. For all the questions, they say they don't believe the general public is in danger. Generally, a sign they have at least a theory of what happened. After arriving at the scene, detectives quickly determined that Virgil and Shirley Best had been shot to death. Virgil had been shot once in the head. Shirley had been shot twice in the head and neck. There was absolutely no doubt this was a double homicide. Naturally, the first person investigators wanted to speak with was the man who said he discovered the bodies. 49-year-old Robert Best. And my agree. So I told them I'd be there between 6-6-30. And I got over there this morning and I saw that they were over. I thought that they were out because of the light drawn. When I knocked, I noticed the door was partially cracked open and I looked and I could see my mom laying on the floor. During this interview, Robert described finding the bodies and even touching them to confirm that both of his parents were dead. I pushed the door open and I went to check her to see she was dead. There was blood everywhere and I turned and I saw my father and I checked him and I just left. I walked back out and told my wife not to come in and hand me the phone. And we waited to the police officer to get there. I called my sister and told her to come on brother and get over there. Detectives also interviewed the rest of the immediate family, including the couple's middle child. Todd Best. This is nuts. This is crazy. What happened here? For this to happen to my parents? Something's not right here. Something's not right at all. Natural calls that you can understand, heart attack. But this, I just only did some of that fucker that did this. Detectives also spoke with Virgil and Shirley's grandson, who's a count, helped narrow the timeline of the murders. We were just talking about anani sent a message to her hairdresser. I guess her hairdresser had some surgery, I don't know, but said I'm glad you're doing okay at 7.45 last night. So she was on Facebook. How do you know that the hairdresser said that? Um yes. At 7.45 pm? Yes. Shirley's last known contact was a Facebook message she sent around 8 pm, and her son Robert called 911 just before 6am, the following morning. That gave detectives a window of roughly 10 hours in which the murders could have occurred. From there, investigators started narrowing that window even further. The living room light had been left on. Something family members said Virgil and Shirley never did before going to bed. They wouldn't answer the door, especially turn on a light to answer a door. They happened before they got in bed. Yes, they have the light on. They're probably washing TV in the living room and they always get the light on when they're washing TV. Detectives believed the murders most likely occurred between 8 pm and midnight. With that window in mind, they started asking a simple question. Where was everyone during that time? And then yesterday I didn't go over there. They were on the farm. I didn't see mom up there, she was in the house putting up decorations. But what time was that? It was still daylight, so it was probably about 4.30 pm. Todd Bess told detectives he had last seen his father earlier that day and stayed home for the rest of the night until leaving for work the following morning. He had no alibi and no one could confirm that he hadn't left his house during the window when the murders occurred. Virgil and Shirley's daughter, Michelle, told investigators pretty much the same thing. Okay, did you go anywhere last night? No, we had dinner at home, dirt grilled out and we ate their dinner and got showers, got clean up, sat in the couch and we were in the whole evening. Okay, did you see your mom and dad yesterday? Or did you talk to her? No. As it goes from last night, what time did you go to bed? What do you say? We probably retired to the bedroom a little early because we were tired. I guess it was probably around 8.30, 45. Michelle explained that she, her husband and their son, went to bed fairly early that night. Her husband confirmed the same account. She came home like grilled chicken. We made chicken out of right now and that was it. Spend the evening on the couch. Okay, so you were home all evening? Yes, you're both home all evening. Everyone in Michelle's household said they were home for the night. But realistically, any one of them could have slipped out without the others noticing. Just like with Todd Best, there were no airtight alibis for anyone. And this uncertainty naturally drew some attention to the grandson. You're pretty close to them. I work with them. The farm is my main source of income. Do you have a key to get in? Me personally, no. But mom and dad keep a key in the microwave in our house. While everyone in the family remained a potential suspect, one person stood out more than the rest. The old is sibling, Robert Best. He found them on the floor and a whole blood. And I asked him, I said, what's the door? Was the door, you know, busted open and he said, no, it was just kind of cracked open. Just a little bit the back door. He said, I don't know what happened. I don't know. And then I guess he told the deputy that he had went in just to check him. Did he say he was brimed, though? No, his wife was with them. Did you walk in? I don't think so. He didn't say anything about Marisol. From the start, some family members felt there was something off about Robert, particularly the way he described finding the bodies and touching them. But it wasn't just that he was the one who discovered them. Robert also had a lump. criminal history. Ever since I was a teenager he's always been in trouble he's spent about 11 or 12 years for conning his con artist basically years ago he was into you know he stole a lot of stuff he even he arrested for stealing from a baseball card shop I remember then he got into like credit card fraud Robert has spent much of his adult life committing fraud and conning people out of money by the time of his parents death he had been convicted of 38 felonies my brother he's involved in a lot of things and he's a white-collar crime guy he you know he's been in prison he he walked into a Cadillac gym and I was telling a detective about that he poor trade that he used was it his dad was a doctor and he's got money and he had a friend of him poor trade my dad as being that doctor and he ended up writing a check for 35 grand driving out with a brand new Cadillac Robert had spent years in prison for his various schemes but his biggest con didn't happen on the outside it happened while he was already behind bars his big thing was while he was in jail for something he had apparently conned a blind woman that lived out of state to send him you know all this money it was like a million dollars or something I don't know and when he got out of jail that time he he come to the house full fully suited and bought trucks and had a girlfriend already and he bought my parents a car and he was spending all this money this was probably 20 19 20 years ago because I have a 21 year old and he was like two one all of this happened okay while incarcerated Robert managed to con a blind woman he had never met out of more than one million dollars after his release he went on a spending spring including buying expensive gifts for his parents within months federal authorities came a knocking seizing the assets and Robert was sent back to prison he went out buying all this stuff water kids all kinds of toys and stuff when gone mom and dad Lincoln right in Lincoln Town car and like literally within a month or a couple weeks on what it was the feds came in and took it and he was hauled off back to prison they got in with wire fraud so he spent like 11 or 12 years 10 or 11 years in federal prison but like I said you know that he he spent his whole from 18 years old all the way until then in and out in and out in and out of jail of course when detectives asked Robert about his million dollar scam he played it down as best he could no pun intended my charges were money laundering or counts of I think wire fraud it was a it was a woman that I was with and she was in love with me and she had a bunch of money and she sent me money all the time and to start a business and then I met somebody she became psychotic I mean really really psychotic I met somebody she found out about it and did you give her a money bank I mean since you didn't want to be with her what still the thing is I bought like I bought a house you know so it was it was things like that you know for this fraud Robert was sentenced to several years in prison and when he got out he seemed committed to living a law abiding life at least for a while and you know he got out a while back and got married and have a marisol sorry had two babies and had cleaned up his life I mean you know they've always moved from one house to the other they've never stayed in one place more than a year you know he says he has a job we love him because he's my brother and you know they always come to the holidays and we always have birthday dinners and everything together but my parents have always been guarded with him because of his past even though Robert had seemingly turned his life around his parents were understandably hesitant to trust him again as was the rest of his family between you me and Rick or I would trust him as far as I could throw it and I don't mean that there would be anybody on the bus but I just don't know it okay you know and what I do know of him I wouldn't trust okay I know he's ex-con or felon whatever I know they had a date line episode on this guy that's how good he is and I'm sorry I'm former marine so if I get blunt but it's fine I prefer blunt if it smells like shit looks like shit it's probably shit it was coming around with a brand well I say brand new he had a Ford platinum edition pickup truck set the black one that was black and the house yes okay this is man and doesn't have a job that I know of Hershey he apparently had just bought a Harley I mean he was cutting and he was kind of I don't know what we'll say it was a joke but we all in the family set it's just a matter of time it's just a matter of time for he is busted because he will and it'll happen but what did he do he don't have a job but he's always going out to expensive restaurants and and buying this and he's always up to date with a new computer gadgets and new cell phones and iPads and tablets and and we're all how you're for that how can you what do you do and I know I know my mom made a comment your brothers backing it again don't back in what he's doing something he's not supposed to be doing I can know what I can feel it after several years of avoiding trouble with the law it appeared that Robert was up to his old tricks somehow he was supporting himself his wife and his two kids without a legitimate job do you know anything that he does no I have no clue he says that he's we told her family that he sells medical equipment like MRI machines overseas to China does he know anything I mean is he educated in medical devices or yeah that you know he knows about as much as medical as I know about being a brain surgeon talks but I don't pay any attention because 99% of things come out of his mouth is not true you know it's lie it makes you think it's true but it's not he's good at talking very good and we and we always told him if he he could be such a good salesman and make tons of money you know right away the legal way and but he won't do it within the family there was a quiet assumption that Robert's freedom was temporary that sooner or later he would end up back behind bars because of that contact was limited outside of holidays and rare family gatherings most of them kept their distance Robert was the black sheep of the family and on the morning of November 12th 2015 that black sheep claimed I have found his parents dead on their living room floor the first initial thought was why why see there that early morning he never goes there that early in the morning was my brother yeah my brother okay he's never there there every time I've ever seen inside of the afternoon or late afternoon or something like that so why would why would he would have been there that early in the morning strangely investigators never pressed Robert on why he went to his parents house that morning instead they turned to his wife and asked her to explain what the two of them were doing there what was the what was the conversation about today with mom and dad it was just a time of coffee and prayer my husband was supposed to be going to trial today for his case and they wanted to just say what was that case about as if the situation wasn't already horrible enough Robert was scheduled to be in court that same morning facing charges that he had sexually assaulted an underage babysitter Robert and his wife told investigators that they had gone to Virgil and Shirley's house for what they described as a brief prayer visit if you want to buy that shit of course no one else could confirm that Virgil or Shirley were expecting them did anyone hear this directly from Connie and Papa I didn't I just heard that Connie call and say meet me for prayer before you go to before you go to court because he came over at like 6 a.m. to pray with him before he went to court and then he found out just so you're just repeating what you heard yes okay there was one more thing that troubled the family in the aftermath of the murders emotions ran high for everyone well everyone except Robert while the whole family wept Robert appeared cold and mostly unaffected but what are why that was after detectives spoke with the entire family Todd best put their concerns into words they didn't believe Robert was capable of killing his own parents but they did believe he was capable of bringing someone dangerous into their lives some one who could. By the time detectives finished working their way through the family, one thing was clear. Everything about this case was clean. The timeline didn't line up. The alibis weren't solid. And the man who found the body is carried a lifetime of baggage into the interview room with them. Even so, investigators had enough to act, and Robert Best was arrested. But what came next changed everything. Not long after Robert was taken into custody, detectives obtained a confession. And it was a confession that no one could have possibly seen coming. On the morning of November 12, 2015, Virgil and Shirley Best were found dead inside their riverview home. Both had been shot, and detectives were left with a narrow timeline, no clear alibis and a family where nearly everyone had opportunity. Their initial focus settled on the person who found the bodies, the victim's oldest son, 49-year-old Robert Best. His criminal past, his emotional detachment, and the circumstances surrounding that morning raised immediate red flags. Investigators believed he was responsible, and they moved to arrest him. But as detectives worked to lock in their case, they still needed to account for everyone connected to that morning. And that included Robert's wife. When detectives interviewed Marisol, they first focused on the morning Robert found his parents dead. Marisol told him that when they arrived, Robert went inside alone, while she stayed outside. "We got there in the morning, we were supposed to have coffee and have a little prayer together. We got there, my husband has long legs, so he was ahead of me. He went into the back, you know, down the door, noticed the door was slightly open. When I didn't hear any response, I kind of stayed back. He went in, I didn't hear anything from him, I didn't think a couple of minutes, and he came out crying and told me to stay where it was." "How long have you guys been married?" "Seven years." "And going on seven years, we've got married in a week." "Okay, and prior to that, how long did you guys want to be married?" "Two or three years?" "Two or three years." "All right, and where did you guys have you had the median?" "My space." "Okay." "That's horrible." "What's your age difference?" When Robert and Marisol started dating, she was 23 and he was 42. The age gap was significant, and seven years into the marriage, the relationship was clearly strained. Divorce had already been discussed. "We've been kind of on our rocky path lately, but we've been trying to work it out." "Okay. Have you been living in the same house together?" "Yeah." "Okay, was there a divorce in the making?" "He was thinking about it." "Over what was, why?" "Not being the best housewife." "Okay." "It's kind of hard to film, his mom shoots." "So seriously, due to the fact that you're not a good housewife, and you're not going to be okay with that." "Yeah." "That was okay with it." "We were still going to be in touch. We're still best friends. That's my best friend." The next thing detectives wanted to know was where Robert and Mara saw were on the night the murders happened. "So when did you get home yesterday?" "Actually, I dropped off my 10th yesterday afternoon, I got home after 838 in the evening." "In the evening?" "Yeah. My parents lived over in Ireland, and Winter Garden." "So as far as you are aware, was it home yesterday from, well, the entire time you're on a garden?" "Yeah." "Okay." "I think he was playing Diablo." Mara saw told detectives that she dropped her children off at her parent's house that night, leaving Robert home alone. She said she spoke with him by phone and believed he never went anywhere. According to Mara saw, he was at home all night playing video games. When detectives spoke to Robert, his account matched hers. He told him he never left the house. "How long had you been at your house by the time you were to bed?" "All day." "All day." "We only left the house once, so we took my son's birthday yesterday. We took him to the village in to have lunch, and we came back, and I stayed there. We all took nabs, and when she got up, she took the kids to our parent's house. "Okay. Do you remember about what time knowledge I'm going to stay around five or six?" "Okay. Do you think of anybody that would want to do harm to your family?" "No." "I can't imagine anybody. Everybody loves him." During this interview, Robert talked about the strained relationship he had with his parents. He admitted that his criminal passed, and the embarrassment of federal agents once showing up at their door, meant they never fully trusted him again. "How was your relationship with him?" "It's good. I mean, I was a black sheep with a bow and, you know, I got in trouble early in the night, and so like that. You know, trying to make it up and do right. I got kids and I have a responsibility to everything, you know, and they've been very supportive." He claimed, despite his criminal past, his parents continued to support him. That raised questions. If Virgil and Shirley were so supportive, why weren't they planning to attend his upcoming criminal trial? "Because my mom really wanted to read text message about sexual things and everything. I'm just, she almost had a nervous breakdown, so she asked my wife if we were on our way to sub-over and just let them pray with us." Robert continued to insist that his parents wanted him to come by that morning to pray for him. But outside of Robert and Marisol, no one else knew anything about this supposed plan. For detectives, this raised a troubling possibility. Were they hearing the truth? Were they being worked by a man who had spent much of his life conning people into believing whatever suited him at that moment? "What else is in your history about, you know, going to play, you know, just stupid kid stuff, you know?" "What does that mean?" "When I was, like, late teens and early 20s or whatever, I had burglaried, you know, breaking in places and stuff like that." "Just what, into homes or into cars?" "There's a business and a car, I must sink a little and drove around, and I'm stupid." "Oh, you stole the car?" "Oh, so it was grand theft. It was broke, you broke in, and then you took the car over." "You still had a piece of you, Entirely?" "No, believe me, that's been a excised no doubt." "But you've tried to kind of be on the straight and narrow since then." "I've tried, I have it, I want it, you know, my life lasts at me or whatever, because I want you walk." "Yeah." In an attempt to confirm or disprove Robert's account of the supposed early morning prayer meeting with his parents, detectives asked to review his text messages. Robert was an enthusiastic about this request, and he flat out refused. Does that surprise you? "Would you allow me to look in your home?" "So look at my phone." "For what?" "You're so looking at me, you could always tell me now." "No, I'm not trying to be a jerk, and I want to help you in any way possible, there's nothing in my phone that's going to help you though." For a man who claimed to be living a lot of biting life, to the point of saying he even avoided J-walking, Robert appeared unusually guarded. He certainly came across as a man with something to hide. With that in mind, detectives made a controversial move. Robert was arrested for failing to appear in court even though he had been with police all morning. Naturally, an elusive judge was blamed for that very shady decision. "So we can't control what the judge told you, I couldn't, I wasn't allowed to go." "No, I agree, but once the judge that put the warning system away, we can clear it, you have to go and the judge can take it off." I told them, "You guys are the quickest way to get that done, and we told you no, it's not my fault. If you call out there, you can get it done." to talk to the judge, correct? This arrest put an immediate end to Robert's cooperation. Once he was told he was being taken into custody, his demeanor changed. And he refused to answer any more questions. - I'm not cooperating anymore with you guys. Not after doing this to me. - Okay. - On today. - Okay. Well, Polk County did this, not us. - Well, it's still, you guys were supposed to make sure that it didn't happen. And I was assured that it was going to, because I told him I wanted to come home. - I know that they know, I know that Polk County knew that you've been with us. - Well, it is now. I'm not giving permission to search nothing. I don't want none of my stuff, nothing. - Okay. - No, this is bullshit, man. Of all times, you're going to fucking do this shit. - Robert was arrested, buying detectives time to determine whether he was responsible for his parents' murder. And they didn't have to wait very long. Lesson 24 hours later, they had their answer. I asked you if there was more than she could tell me and you told me that you had gone to the house last night and you had some prayer time. - Yes. - Okay. Talk to me about that. - Yeah, I had called earlier on my way back just to see if I could stop by. I had a little prayer session. I did. We talked for a good 23 minutes. I'm going to have one drop, honestly. - In a surprising twist, Robert's wife, Marisol, requested another interview with detectives. During that conversation, she admitted to going to Virgil and Shirley's house on the night they were killed to pray with them. And she claimed to have blacked out while she was there. - So something must have happened or triggered you to black out. - They were not happy with him. And they haven't been since his mess up with the federal case years ago. They've never forgiven him for it. And the one time that he needed them to be with him, they weren't none of his family was supportive. - Of course, detectives weren't satisfied about Marisol's claim that she blacked out because clearly it's bullshit. And they pressed her for more details about what happened to Robert's parents. - I don't know. I just been hearing all that negativity and knowing that all you need right now was family to be with him and support them 'cause we're going to trial the next day. He had nobody except me. - What did they say exactly? Do you remember? - They're just disappointed in him. They said he has no excuse. You know, he's been dealing with this longer than he should. No better than to have family just deny you. - Loyalty is since part breaking, especially a family like that has always so caring and loving. - Marisol claimed that instead of the encouraging prayer session she expected, Virgil and Shirley only criticized Robert. According to her, the conversation was harsh and escalated into insults. Then something inside of her snapped. - What happened inside the house? Did you guys start dealing with it screaming at each other? - No, that's a thing. They were frustrated and pissed off and I don't know something snapped. I'm not like that at all. - Do you know what we said that just made you snap? - They were just disappointed always. He couldn't ever get right in that. He's always going to end up leading the same road and that's why he's in trouble again with this and it's like, I said, you guys, we're always so happy because I made him do it better. It's just almost so fake. - That's all ours out there. - That's far as, as far as being religious and well it's God's will, whatever happens and he doesn't deserve to be going to jealous of first place. - Marisol told detectives that as the conversation devolved into criticism of Robert. She excused herself and stepped outside. She went to her truck, retrieved a gun, and then returned to the living room. - When you came back in, what happened then? I went to the bathroom and that's about it. They kept talking to me as I was walking to the bathroom and it was more negativity. - Where did you put the gun at? Was it in your pants? Was it in your hand? Was it on your shirt? - Mm-hmm. - Like I said, I was so angry. - What? - Just remember coming out of the bathroom and I was as I was walking and said, okay let's do the prayer. That's about it. I was so frustrated. - With a handgun tucked in her pants, Marisol told Virgil and Shirley she was ready to pray. They complied, bowed their heads and started praying for their son. - I remember them getting up to couch and wanting to hold my hand and I didn't want to hold their hand, but they insisted. - Did they have their heads bowed? Does her eyes close praying? - They want to say yes. - Did they see you coming as far as the gun? - I don't think so. - And can you do that? - They expected from me. - While Virgil and Shirley had their heads bowed in prayer, Marisol drew the gun from her waistband. Then she aimed at Virgil's face and fired. - And that's because he was the most negative. I mean, his mom, I expected it. 'Cause she was always so judgmental. And when he started talking about, he was always a disappointment to him and all that, it was just kind of upset. We don't get upset. And two dollars are not allowed to be upset. - After shooting Virgil, Marisol turned the gun on his wife, Shirley, and fired two more shots. - Where did you shoot, Papa? - I just, I remember that. That's it. I just remember pulling the gun and I know it was towards Papa. That's it. I just aimed. I don't know where I aimed. I just pointed. That's it. - Okay. Where did you shoot? - Not me. - Funny. - That, I can, I don't know. - Virgil best was shot once in the head. Shirley was shot twice, once in the head and once through the neck. It's likely they both died instantly. - After you pulled the trigger and shot them, they just stick around there for any period of time or did you immediately leave or something else? - I think I wonder, I'm just trying to open drawers, you know, just to kind of, I don't know, make it seem like something went wrong. - After killing her in-laws, Marisol tented to stage the scene as a robbery gone wrong. She left drawers open, knocked over a clock, and left the back door open. This level of deliberate action conflicted with her claim that she had just blacked out. Even so, detectives now had a confession. And in many ways, Marisol's account held together. But one question remained unresolved. They couldn't yet rule out Roberts' involvement in the killings. - 'Cause I'm not so sure that he wasn't there. - He was at home the entire time. Track his phone calls. He was talking to the turkey most of the time. You wouldn't appeal to him because at all, if I had told him, or if he even knew about it, or even attempted to think about something like that, he loves his parents. Regardless of what they thought of him and how they treated him, he may get upset with them and just want to move. But nothing like this ever occurred. He wasn't there, I promise you that. - I'll leave that. - Marisol insisted that Robert had no involvement in the murders and wasn't present when his parents were killed. She told detectives, he had no idea they were dead until the following morning when the two of them discovered the bodies together. - How did it come about this morning when you guys go there and find them? How did that happen? - He had blocked up and the door was open. Did you stay in the car or did you go up to the door with them this morning? - He beat me out of the car, pretty usual. - So I was flagging behind a little bit, were you lagging because you knew what he was gonna find? - No, I was just lagging behind. I was extremely exhausted, and I was just lagging behind. - Detectives told Marisol they believed her and the record suggests they meant it. Prosecutors appeared to reach the same conclusion. Robert Best was never charged with any crime related to his parents' murder. Marisol, however, was arrested immediately after giving her confession. - On Wednesday, 30-year-old Marisol Best met with her in-laws, Virgil and Shirley Best, at their riverview hole. Deputy say when she left, they were dead. - She was upset about some of the comments, negative comments, that they were making about her son, and got angry and unfortunately took out her anger on her in-laws. - The argument was over her husband, their son, Robert Vests, upcoming court date in Polk. County. It involves sex acts with a minor. She apparently got so mad she grabbed a gun and opened fire. Marisol was charged with two counts of premeditated murder and pleaded not guilty. Robert's legal troubles followed a different path. In the separate case involving allegations of sex with a minor, he accepted a plea deal. He was sentenced to about a year in jail, followed by four years of probation. Prosecutors declined to explain why that deal was offered. About a week before Robert's release, detectives met with him one final time. This time to discuss his wife's upcoming murder trial. One of the first questions they asked was how Marisol had behaved on the night of the killings before Robert and his parents were dead. "I don't know, just in hindsight, you know, but I mean at the time I'm thinking she's really nervous about the next day about going to trial. She seemed very distressed." "Did Marisol at any point tell you or elude to you at all what she had done?" "That's one of the things I heard. If she did this, she knew what I was going to find. I'll let me walk into that with no warning whatsoever." Robert maintained that Marisol never told him what she had done. Whether that's true is something we'll probably never know for certain. If you want my opinion, who knows? Really? What do you think? "You're getting kids and you're blown up and forcing her at some point or the purpose of the recording is that yes?" "Yes." "Okay, bye." About two years after the murders in 2018, Marisol's case went to trial. Her defense team focused on creating a reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury and by pointing the finger at Robert best. "Is this a case of blind devotion or cold blood and murder? Marisol best attorney floated one theory to the jury." The evidence will show that Marisol best would do anything, anything to protect her husband, Robert best. Even take the fall on a double murder charge. "You're going to hear that Miss Best husband, Robert, has been convicted of 38 felony charges. He has had a lot of problems. Problems, they say, soured his relationship with his parents. Surely and Virgil best were very unhappy with their son, Robert." In the end, though, the jury rejected the defense's argument and cited with the prosecution. "But it's clear now that the jury did not buy the defense's theory. We just found out minutes ago that, in fact, the jury did come back with a verdict guilty on both counts of murder she will now be sentenced at the end of this month." Following her conviction, Marisol was sentenced to two consecutive life turns in prison, without the possibility of parole. "You doubt that she did it." "I mean, obviously, I think that she did it. You know, she's going to admit that she did it. I think that she didn't do it. Why she would do it? That's the thing I want to know. That's what I want to ask her. You know, I want to know why. There's nothing that my parents could say to me that would make me even want to slap it much less just something like that. I can't imagine her either doing that." As far as motives go, this one can be a bit difficult to wrap your head around. A brutal, double murder. Not for money, not for revenge, not for self-preservation. But because someone said something nasty to your spouse. On its face, that explanation is absurd. People say hurtful things all the time. Families argue. I mean, have you ever been to Thanksgiving? None of that usually ends in gunfire. But motive isn't about what makes sense to us. It's about what mattered to the person who pulled the trigger. "My parents are very critical. They're very opinionated. A lot of older people are. They would get on to me about this situation that I was in and everything. If I had been going to a real church instead of this church, you know, it wouldn't have happened. You know, and I just let it go in one ear and out the other. You know, it's just them. I love them. It's my dad. It's mom and dad, you know. That she would get very upset about. You know, she'd take it very personally. They should be supportive. Robert described his parents as critical people. Judgmental, blunt, and often harsh. To him, it was mostly background noise. Something he lived with his entire life. He'd learned to let it roll off his back. But Marisol was a different story. She didn't. She couldn't. Her back held on to things, apparently. When Robert could dismiss, Marisol absorbed. What he heard is nagging, she experienced as condemnation. In her mind, the criticism wasn't just aimed at Robert. It was aimed at her and her ego. A rejection, a betrayal. A reminder that no matter how long she'd been part of the family, she would always be seen as the black sheep's wife. Sometimes the only explanation for a horrific crime is that someone couldn't tolerate the way they felt and chose violence to silence it. Virgil and Shirley Best never got the chance to explain themselves. They didn't get a final argument. They didn't get a moment of understanding. And sadly, the reason they died doesn't offer clarity or closure. It leaves the rest of the family. And quite frankly, all of us sitting with an uncomfortable truth. Reality is messy, incomplete, and deeply unsatisfying. And people are petty, egotistical, self-centered, and some people are just shit. That does it for another one. Hope you enjoyed it. If you did, you can head on over to swordandscale.com to find out more. Download our app on iOS and Android. And we'll see you right back here next week for some more murder. Till then, stay safe. [Music] [BLANK_AUDIO]