Food Network 'Restaurant Impossible' Alum Arrested in Cold Case Murder

A Columbia, Missouri man who appeared in an episode of Food Network's Restaurant: Impossible, was arrested in a four-year-old murder case on Tuesday, May 11. Jeffrey McWilliams, 28, was arrested for second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, and armed criminal action for his alleged involvement in a December 2017 home invasion. When police responded to the scene, they found Augustus Roberts, 28, unconscious; he was pronounced dead by medical personnel at the scene.

The home invasion happened on Dec. 11, 2017. Police responded to a call at 3:30 a.m. that morning and found Roberts not breathing. Investigators believe the home invasion was drug-related and suspects targeted the residence reports KMIZ. However, police did not reveal why they suspect McWilliams was involved. He is now being held without bond at Boone County Jail, reports KOMU. The judge agreed to a bond investigation, and the next hearing will be on Tuesday, May 18.

In May 2019, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration alleged that Roberts' death was connected to a drug trafficking scene. About 800 pounds of marijuana were stolen from a truck parked in the driveway of the residence Roberts was found dead in, according to the investigation. The suspects drove off with the truck but abandoned it close by the home. Officials said about 94 pounds of marijuana remained in the truck. They also found over 3,000 THC oil pens in the truck and Roberts' residence. According to court documents, two other suspects participated in the home invasion with McWilliams.

McWilliams owned a now-closed ice cream shop in east Columbia called Let's Roll. In 2019, he was working at the restaurant McLanks when it was featured on Restaurant: Impossible. The episode showed host Robert Irvine fixing the restaurant so it could stay open. There were reports that the show planned to revisit McLanks to help it reopen after pandemic restrictions were lifted, reports Deadline. McLanks has not commented on McWilliams' arrest.

McLanks was vandalized after it was featured on Food Network. At the time, McWilliams was interviewed by KOMU. On Wednesday, Jerry Fleming, who lives on the street where the murder happened, told KOMU he was happy to hear there was finally an arrest in the case. "I was very much amazed because after living in the city of Chicago, where I had no problems, here's a homicide, committed four doors from my house in Columbia, Missouri," Fleming recalled feeling after the home invasion. "It was a little disheartening."