In short
Double homicide of Virgil (70) and Shirley Best (69) in their Riverview, Florida living room on Nov 12, 2015; investigation focused on family members, then shifted after a confession.
Key claims
The murders likely occurred between 8 p.m. and midnight; Shirley was shot twice (head and neck) and Virgil once in the head. Robert Best was the first to discover the bodies and had a long fraud/con artist criminal history. Marisol Best confessed she went to the house to pray, became enraged when Virgil and Shirley criticized Robert, retrieved a handgun, shot Virgil, then shot Shirley, and staged the scene as a robbery gone wrong.
Notable examples
Robert’s door was “slightly open” and he found his parents “dead” with “blood everywhere.” Marisol left drawers open and a clock knocked over.
Guests
No external guests are interviewed; the “guests” are the episode’s interview subjects—Michelle Best (daughter), Todd Best (son), Robert Best (oldest son), and Marisol Best (Robert’s wife).
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOIntroduction to the Episode
0:06 to 0:34
The episode introduces a tragic event in Riverview, Florida.
“And I looked and I could see my mom laying on the floor.”
A Quiet Suburb's Shocking Event
0:34 to 1:15
Riverview's normalcy is disrupted by a shocking incident.
“A show that reveals that the worst monsters are real.”
Interview with Michelle Best
1:15 to 2:10
Michelle Best recounts the frantic call that changed everything.
“Workdays, church services, and family businesses that have been passed down for decades.”
The Life of Shirley and Virgil Best
2:10 to 4:04
Details about the lives and characters of the Best family.
“Michelle told detectives that on the morning of November 12th, she received a frantic phone call from her oldest brother, Robert.”
The Best Family's Relationship with Guns
4:04 to 4:51
Discussion on the Best family's comfort with firearms.
“They have been for the last few years, couple years.”
Community Perception of the Bests
4:51 to 8:07
How the Best family was viewed in their community and by their children.
“As soon as you walk into your left, There's, like, Bibles sitting there, and it's right next to the Bible.”
The Devastating News
8:07 to 9:06
Michelle receives shocking news about her parents.
“Do they have any enemies that you're aware of?”
The Discovery of the Bodies
9:06 to 11:28
Robert Best describes the harrowing moment he finds his parents.
“Then I see mom and Derek start walking over here and, you know, they can barely speak.”
Investigation Begins
11:28 to 13:12
Detectives initiate their investigation into the double homicide.
“Virgil and Shirley Best had been gunned down in their living room, and detectives quickly determined they were dealing with a double homicide.”
Details of the Crime Scene
13:12 to 14:00
A look at the details surrounding the crime scene and the victims.
“We're going to keep it very general right now because we're still very early in the investigation.”
Show all 25 chapters
Discovering the Tragedy
14:00 to 15:00
Hear the harrowing account of Robert finding his parents' bodies.
“I have a court case in Polk County, and my parents had asked if we could stop over on our way this morning, and they wanted to pray with us.”
Initial Police Investigation
15:01 to 17:00
Understand the timeline and initial questioning of the family.
“And we waited until the police officer gave her.”
Family Dynamics and Alibis
17:01 to 19:36
Explore the family's accounts and the uncertainties surrounding their alibis.
“And then yesterday, I didn't go over there.”
Robert's Criminal History
19:37 to 22:22
Delve into Robert's past and his history of fraud and crime.
“From the start, some family members felt there was something off about Robert, particularly the way he described finding the bodies and touching them.”
Evolving Suspicion of Robert
22:23 to 24:36
Examine how family perceptions shifted towards Robert after the tragedy.
“and like literally within a month or a couple weeks, I don't know what it was, the feds came in and took it and he was hauled off back to prison.”
Questionable Circumstances
24:37 to 28:00
Investigate the odd circumstances surrounding Robert's early morning visit.
“I know he's an ex-con or a felon, whatever.”
The Prayer Meeting Before Tragedy
28:00 to 31:06
Explore the events leading up to the murders and the family's dynamics.
“and they wanted to just sit with us and pray with us.”
Detectives Unravel the Timeline
31:06 to 37:28
Investigators piece together the timeline and the alibis surrounding the murders.
“On the morning of November 12, 2015, Virgil and Shirley Best were found dead inside their Riverview home.”
Confessions and Complications
37:28 to 42:05
Marisol's unexpected confession and the complications that arise from it.
“Were they hearing the truth or were they being worked by a man who had spent much of his life conning people into believing whatever suited him at that moment?”
Marisol's Emotional Breakdown
42:05 to 44:47
Explore Marisol's emotional state leading to violent actions.
“And they pressed her for more details about what happened to Robert's parents.”
The Fatal Act
44:47 to 47:35
Details of the shooting incident and Marisol's actions.
“I just remember coming out of the bathroom, and as I was walking, I said, okay, let's do the prayer.”
Aftermath and Investigation
47:35 to 50:07
Investigative findings and the aftermath of the murders.
“And in many ways, Marisol's account held together.”
Trial and Verdict
50:07 to 53:18
Marisol's trial proceedings and the final verdict.
“Marisol was charged with two counts of premeditated murder and pleaded not guilty.”
Understanding Motive and Impact
53:18 to 56:01
Discussion on the motives behind the crime and its implications.
“Following her conviction, Marisol was sentenced to two consecutive life terms in prison without the possibility of parole.”
The Complexity of Crime and Emotion
56:01 to 57:12
Explore the unsettling emotions surrounding horrific crimes and the lack of closure.
“Sometimes the only explanation for a horrific crime is that someone couldn't tolerate the way they felt and chose violence to silence it.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Sword and Scale contains adult themes and violence and is not intended for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.
0:12And I looked and I could see my mom laying 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. There was blood everywhere. This is Season 13, Episode 355 of Sword and Scale. A show that reveals that the worst monsters are real.
1:14Riverview, Florida is a quiet suburb outside of Tampa that's built around routine. Workdays, 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 Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, homicide detectives spoke with a middle-aged woman named Michelle Best. Derek and I get up at 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. I just picked up my cell phone to look at the time. It was ringing in.
1:56And 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? And he says, you need to go here now. And we live right across the street. So I put some extra 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-old Shirley Best and 70-year-old Virgil Best. They've been married 40, 45 years. Other than normal marital differences, any marital issues?
2:37Nope. Did they grow up here in the Tampa Bay area? My father grew up very poor in Manatee County, like in the parish area. And then my mom grew up here in Gibsonton, actually. Her father was a fish farmer for 30-some-odd years. So she's been in fish farming her whole life. Shirley and Virgil owned and operated Quality Finns 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 sell fish. So this that I'm looking at in front of me, that's all his property was fish ponds? Yes, all of that. It runs deep, way back there into the width and length.
3:21Okay. 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 Ani, my grandma, I call them Papa and Ani. They own the fish farm and Papa is normally out there working on it and Ani is counting up fish and helping them 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 sang in the church choir. They're big in the church. They go to Gibson 10 Baptist. She's in the choir.
4:02They're always involved in the church. They have been for the last few years, couple years. Okay. Did you see them coming and going last night to church? No, 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, a brand new one, and she keeps it in her purse.
4:48Where does she keep it in the house? Do you know? 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 in the past? No, they're just really country. They are very old-time, believe-in-the-Second Amendment people. While 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.
5:30My sister, myself, and my parents' backyard come together. Okay. Go around the corner as my sister and then me. Okay. So all of our backyards. Okay. Yeah. So when you leave the house, do you see their house? Every morning. Every morning. Every morning. So I want you to think about this morning. Was there anything this morning? Yes. I left my house like I always do, same time. I always look at their house. I just always look at the house. I noticed the living room light on. The living room light was on. I thought it was on because they always turn the lights off when they go to bed. and this was on and my first thought was, okay, well maybe they just couldn't sleep and they both got up early for some reason.
6:22You know, I didn't think too much of it at that time. I still didn't until I, you know, my sister called me this morning. Virgil and Shirley were also close to their children's spouses, especially Michelle's husband, Derek. Any issues going on? Oh God, no. Love that man. I would do anything for him and vice versa. We just, we just worked on my, about three weeks ago and he helped me. We do Jeep events together. We have no problems. Okay. And what about their relationship as a husband or wife? Any issues there? No, they loved each other so much. 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.
7:12Even 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 constitutionalists, you know, students there, preppers. Any marital issues between them? I don't believe so. They seem 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 of your parents sounded very busy.
7:54They worked very hard. They worked very hard their whole life. They're very hard workers their entire life. They busted their butt. Not some 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? To your knowledge, anybody had issues with? No, sir. Not to my knowledge at all. I mean, neighbors, no, sweetest damn people in the world. Okay. Sweetest people in the world.
8:37They do anything for anybody. I could sit here all day long and go on about how great they are and was loved by everybody. Absolutely everybody, especially family, friends, neighbors, churchgoers. 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 and Michelle and her husband were 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 flabbergasted and I say, what's going on?
9:19And Derek says, nothing, buddy, just, you're not going to school today. And then right after he says that, mom says, Papa Nani had 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 kind of tell me, walk me through this morning and what what we got going on here. My parents had asked us yesterday if we could stop by this morning on our way into court.
9:56I have a court hearing today, and they wanted to pray with us. So my wife and 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 use 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 and I saw my father laying on the floor too.
10:31I 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 911. 111.
11:19We're already in the house. The living room. During the 911 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.
12:26By 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 6.15 a.m. in their home by a family member who called 911. Crime scene techs arrived in droves to the five-acre property that contains a fish farm out back. 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.
13:12We'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 last saw 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.
13:5349-year-old Robert Best. Tell me how we kind of got here this morning. I have a court case in Polk County, and my parents had asked if we could stop over on our way this morning, and they wanted to pray with us. And I agreed. So I told them I'd be over there between 6, 6.30. And I got over there this morning, and I saw that they were up, or I thought that they were up because the lights were on. And 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.
14:44I pushed the door open and I went to check her to see.
14:52She 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 until the police officer gave her. I called my sister and told her to call my 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?
15:29Something's not right here. Something's not right at all. Natural causes you can understand. Heart attack. But this? I just know they did something. That fucker that did this. Detectives also spoke with Virgil and Shirley's grandson, whose account helped narrow the timeline of the murders. We were just talking about Ani 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 745 last night. So she was on Facebook. How do you know that? The hairdresser said that? Yes. At 7.45 p.m.? Yes. Shirley's last known contact was a Facebook message she sent around 8 p.m.
16:13And her son Robert called 911 just before 6 a.m. 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. It happened before they got in bed. Yes, they have the light on, they're probably watching TV in the living room, and they always keep the light on when they're watching TV.
16:52Detectives believe the murders most likely occurred between 8 p.m. and midnight. night. 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. About what time was that? It was still daylight, so it was probably about 4, 4.30. Todd Best 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.
17:35Virgil 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. Derek grilled out, and we ate there and dinner and got showers, got cleaned up, sat on the couch, and we were in the whole evening. Okay. Did you see your mom and dad yesterday? No. Or did you talk to him? 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, 8.45. Michelle explained that she, her husband, and their son went to bed fairly early that night.
18:16Her husband confirmed the same account. She came home. I grilled chicken. We made chicken alfredo, and that was it. Spent the evening on the couch. Okay, so you were home while eating. Yes, sir. Yeah, we were both home while eating. 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.
18:54Do you have a key to get in? Me personally, no, but Mom and Derek keep a key near the microwave in our house. While everyone in the family remained a potential suspect, one person stood out more than the rest. The oldest sibling, Robert Best. He found them on the floor in a pool of blood. And I asked him, I said, was the door, was the door, you know, busted open? and he said, no, it was just kind of cracked open, just a little bit at 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 by himself?
19:35No, his wife was with him. Did she walk in, I guess, honestly? Oh, no, 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 long criminal history. Ever since I was a teenager, he's always been in trouble. He spent about 11 or 12 years for conning. He's a con artist, basically. Years ago, he was into, you know, he was, he stole a lot of stuff. He would be arrested for stealing from a baseball card shop, I remember.
20:20Then he got into, like, credit card fraud. Robert had 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 walked into a Cadillac dealership, and I was telling the detective about this. He portrayed that his dad was a doctor, and he's got money. And he had a friend of him portray my dad as being that doctor. And he ended up writing a check for$35 ,000 and driving out with a brand-new Cadillac.
21:08Robert 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 come to the house 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 19, 20 years ago because I have a 21-year-old and he was like two when all of this happened.
21:57While incarcerated, Robert managed to con a blind woman he had never met out of more than$1 million. After his release, he went on a spending spree, including buying expensive gifts for his parents. Within months, federal authorities came a-knockin', seizing the assets, and Robert was sent back to prison. He went out buying all this stuff, bought her kids all kinds of toys and stuff, went and bought mom and dad a Lincoln, a brand-new Lincoln town car. and like literally within a month or a couple weeks, I don't know what it was, the feds came in and took it and he was hauled off back to prison.
22:37They got him with wire fraud. So he spent like 11 or 12 years, 10 or 11 years in federal prison. But like I said, you know, he had spent his whole from 18 years old all the way up till 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 for counts of, I think, wire fraud. 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 to start a business. And then I met somebody. She became psychotic.
23:23I mean, really, really psychotic. I met somebody. She found out about it. And did you give her money back? I mean, since you didn't want to be with her? Well, 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 him and Marisol started having two babies and had cleaned up his life. I mean, you know, they've always moved from one house to the other.
24:00They'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 me and the recorder, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw it. And I don't mean to throw anybody under the bus, but I just don't know him.
24:35And what I do know of him, I wouldn't trust. I know he's an ex-con or a felon, whatever. I know they had a Dateline episode on this guy. That's how good he is. I'm sorry, I'm a former Marine, so if I get blunt, but... It's fine. I prefer blunt. If it smells like shit and looks like shit, it's probably shit. was coming around with a brand, well, I say brand new. He had a Ford Platinum Edition pickup truck. Is that the black one that was parked in the house? Yes. Okay. This is a man that doesn't have a job that I know of per se. He apparently had just bought a Harley. I mean, he was kind of, I don't know, I won't say it was a joke, but we all in the family said it's just a matter of time.
25:15It's just a matter of time for he gets busted because he will, and it'll happen. But what does he do? He don't have a job. But he's always going out to expensive restaurants and buying this. And he's always up to date with the new computer gadgets and new cell phones and iPads and tablets. And we're all, how do you afford that? How can you, what do you do? And I know my mom made a comment, your brother's back in it again. Back in what? He's doing something he's not supposed to be doing. I can know it. I can feel it. And after several years of avoiding trouble with the law, it appeared that Robert was up to his old tricks.
25:53Somehow 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, this is what he tells the family, that he sells medical equipment like MRI machines overseas to China. Does he know anything? I mean, is he educated in medical devices? that you know of now. 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. It's a lie. It makes you think it's true, but it's not. He's good at talking. Very good. And we always told him he could be such a good salesman and make tons of money the right way, the legal way.
26:42But 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 12, 2015, that black sheep claimed to have found his parents dead on their living room floor. The first initial thought was, why is he there that early in the morning? He never goes there that early in the morning. Who's? My brother. Yeah. My little brother.
27:26Okay. He's never there. Every time I've ever seen him, it's always been in the afternoon or late afternoon or something like that. So why would he 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 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 sit with us and pray with us. What was that case about?
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28:09Alleged. That's for the minor. Do you know the minor? Yeah. They used to babysit for us. 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 Ani and Papa? I didn't. I just heard that Ani called and said, meet me for prayer before you go to court.
28:55Because he came over at like 6 a.m. to pray with them before he went to court. And then he found them. Okay, so you're just repeating what you've 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. I wonder why that was. How did the Marisol behave while you were there with him? Marisol was crying. I was hugging Marisol. but was teary-eyed and but he wasn't sobbing but I was hugging Marisol and mom and Derek were just sobbing they they could not believe what was going on and I was sobbing with Marisol.
29:42After 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. Someone who could. So basically what I'm getting at is, you know, is there somebody he pissed off or he borrowed money from that he can't pay? And I know where you live and, you know, you're not going to give me the money. What was he doing there at six o 'clock this morning? You know, I have no idea. I didn't know he had a court. By the time detectives finished working their way through the family, one thing was clear.
30:29Nothing about this case was clean. The timeline didn't line up. The alibis weren't solid. And the man who found the bodies carried a lifetime of baggage into the interview room with him. 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.
31:33On 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.
32:24And that included Robert's wife. We're speaking with a Ms. Marizal. I have your spelling and your first name M-A-R-I-S-O-L. Is that correct? Yes. Okay. And the last name of Best, B-E-S-T? Correct. And your date of birth of February 24, 1985? Correct. All right. When detectives interviewed Marisol, they first focused on the morning Robert found his parents dead. Marisol told them 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.
33:07he went into the back, knocked on 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 for the next couple of minutes. And he came out crying and told me to stay where I was. How long have you guys been married? Seven years. Going on seven years. We got married in 08. Okay, and prior to that, how long did you guys know each other before you got married? Two or three years. Two or three years. All right. And where'd you guys, how'd you guys meet again? MySpace. Okay. That's horrible. What's your age difference?
33:43When 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 um 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 yeah it's kind of hard to fill his mom's shoes so seriously due to the fact that you're not a good housewife and and you're gonna be okay with Yeah, I was okay with it.
34:32I mean, 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 Marisol were on the night the murders happened. So when did you get home yesterday? Actually, I dropped off my kids yesterday afternoon. I got home after 8.30, 9 o 'clock. In the evening? Yeah. My parents live over in Winter Garden. So, as far as you are aware, was at home yesterday from, well, the entire time you were in a garden? Yeah. Okay. Yeah, he was on the phone. I think he was playing Diablo. Marisol told detectives that she dropped her children off at her parents' house that night, leaving Robert home alone.
35:17She said she spoke with him by phone and believed he never went anywhere. According to Marisol, 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 went to bed? All day. All day. We only left the house once. We took my son's birthday today. We took him to the village inn 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 her parents' house. Okay, do you remember about what time that was? I want to say around five, five or six.
36:00Okay. Can you think of anybody that would want to do harm to your family? I cannot imagine anybody. Everybody loves them. During this interview, Robert talked about the strained relationship he had with his parents. He admitted that his criminal past 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 of the family. You know, I got in trouble early in life and stuff like that. But I've been, you know, trying to make it up and do right. I got kids and I have responsibilities and everything, you know.
36:38And, you know, 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 didn't want to go read text messages about sexual things and everything. My mom just, she almost had a nervous breakdown. So she asked my wife if we were on our way, if we would stop 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.
37:24For detectives, this raised a troubling possibility. Were they hearing the truth or 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? Just stupid kid stuff, you know. What does that mean? When I was like late teens and early 20s or whatever, I had burglary, you know, breaking in places and stuff like that. Just what, into homes or into cars? It was a business and a car. I had my Mustang convertible and drove around. I'm stupid. Oh, you stole the car? Oh, so it was grand theft.
38:13You broke in and then you took the car. You still had that piece of you inside of you? No, believe me, that's been excised, no doubt. But you've tried to kind of be on the straight and narrow since then? I tried. I have been. I wanted, you know, my wife laughs at me or whatever because I won't jaywalk. 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 wasn't enthusiastic about this request, and he flat out refused. Does that surprise you? Would you allow me to look in your phone?
38:52To look in my phone? For what? Just to look in it. You can 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. Okay. For a man who claimed to be living a law-abiding life, to the point of saying he even avoided jaywalking, 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.
39:36So 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 put the warrant system away, we can clear it. You'll have to go and the judge can take it off. Well, I told him, you guys are the quickest way to get that done. And if you know it's not my fault, if you call up there, you can get in to talk to the judge. 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 on today.
40:19Okay. Well, Polk County did this, not us. Well, it's still. You guys were supposed to make sure that that didn't happen, and I was assured that it was going to because I told them I wanted to go. 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.
40:53Less than 24 hours later, they had their answer. I asked you if there was more that you had to tell me. 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. 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 20, 30 minutes. And then I blanked out, 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.
41:37And she claimed to have blacked out while she was there. 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'm just hearing all that negativity and knowing that all he needed right now was family to be with him and support him.
42:28Because we were going to trial the next day and he had nobody except me. What did they say exactly? Do you remember? They were just disappointed in him. And I said that he has no excuse. You know, he's been dealing with this long enough. He should know better. And to have family just deny you loyalty is just heartbreaking, especially a family like that that is 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.
43:18What happened inside the house? Did you guys start yelling and screaming at each other? No. That's the thing. They were frustrated and pissed off. I don't know. Something snapped. I'm not like that at all. Do you know what was said? that just made you snap? They were just disappointed, always. He couldn't ever do right, and 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 were always so happy because I married him, and he's doing better. It's just all so fake. As far as that? As far as being religious and, you know, well, it's God's will, whatever happens.
44:07You know, he doesn't deserve to be going to jail in the 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. It was more negativity. Where did you put the gun at? Was it in your pants? Was it in your hand? Was it under your shirt? Like I said, I was so angry. Okay. I just remember coming out of the bathroom, and as I was walking, I said, okay, let's do the prayer.
44:54That'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 off the 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 and their eyes closed, praying? I want to say yes. Did they see you coming as far as the gun? I don't think so. I don't think they expected it from me. While Virgil and Shirley had their heads bowed in prayer, Marisol drew the gun from her waistband.
45:42Then she aimed at Virgil's face and fired. And that's because he was the most negative. I mean, his mom, I expected him because she was always so judgmental. And when he started talking about how he was always a disappointment to him and all that, I was just so upset. I don't get upset. I have two toddlers. I'm 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.
46:27I just pointed. That's it. Okay. Where did you shoot Yanni? Bonnie? That, again, 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, did you stick around there for any period of time or did you immediately leave or something else? I think I went around 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 attempted to stage the scene as a robbery gone wrong.
47:20She 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 Robert's involvement in the killings. Because I'm not so sure that he wasn't there. He was at home the entire time. He could track his phone calls. He was talking to his attorney most of the time. and you would not be okay with us at all. If I had told him, or if he even knew about it, or even attempted to think about something like that, he loved his parents, regardless of what they thought of him and how they treated him.
48:12He may get upset with them and, you know, just want to move, but nothing like this ever. Okay, 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 walked up and the door was open. Did you stay in the car or did you go up to the door with him this morning? He beat me out of the car per usual.
49:00So I was lagging behind a little bit. Were you lagging because he knew what he was going to 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 home. Deputies say when she left, they were dead.
49:42She 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 Best's 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.
50:27Prosecutors 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 knew his parents were dead. Once she arrived back home, what was her demeanor? What was she like? I don't know. It's just in hindsight, you know, but I mean, at the time I'm thinking she was really nervous about the next day, about going to trial. She seemed very distressed. Did Marisol at any point tell you or allude to you at all what she had done?
51:13That's one of the things that hurt, is that if she did this, that she knew what I was going to find and let me walk into that, you know, 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? What is your plan? Staying here. I'm going to stay here and we're supposed to get a place with my in-laws so I can be with the kids and stuff like that. Okay. What's your plan with her? We got kids. Do you plan on divorcing her at some point?
51:57The purpose of the recording, is that a yes? Yes. Okay. Bye. About two years after the murders, in 2018, Marisol's case went to trial. Her defense team focused on creating reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury by pointing the finger at Robert Best. Is this a case of blind devotion or cold-blooded murder? Marisol Best's attorney floated one theory to the jury. The evidence will show that Mayor Saul 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's husband, Robert, has been convicted of 38 felony charges.
52:47He has had a lot of problems. Problems, they say, soured his relationship with his parents. Shirley and Virgil Best were very unhappy with their son, Robert. In the end, though, the jury rejected the defense's argument and sided 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 terms in prison without the possibility of parole.
53:28Do you doubt that she did it? I mean, obviously, I think that she did it. You know, if she's going to admit that she did it, I think that she did 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 them, much less do 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.
54:11On 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. You know, they're very opinionated. A lot of older people are. And, you know, 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. And, you know, and I just let it go in one ear and out the other.
54:53You know, it's just them. I love them. And it's mom and dad, you know. But she would get very upset about it. You know, she'd take it very personally that 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'd 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 as nagging, she experienced as condemnation. In her mind, the criticism wasn't just aimed at Robert.
55:44It 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.
56:39Reality is messy, incomplete, and deeply unsatisfying. And people are petty, egotistical, self-centered, and some people are just shit.
57:11That 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. Until then, stay safe.
57:40Thank you.
58:05Thank you.
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