Robert E. Yee was a beloved father, grandfather, and husband who dedicated 26 years of his life to the City of Miami as a police officer, rising to the rank of captain before his retirement in 1995. Remembered as an exemplary man, he was 61 years old and enjoying his retirement, though he continued to work to provide for his family. His daughter, Debbie Guzman, followed in his footsteps to become a police officer, and his grandchildren intended to do the same. His wife, Maricel Yee, recalled his last words to her were, as always, "Be careful out there, I’ll be home soon. I love you."
After his long career in law enforcement, Yee took a job as a security guard overseeing daily operations at the Hurricane Cove Marina, located at 1884 NW North River Drive along the Miami River. On the afternoon of July 10, 2009, while making his rounds in a golf cart, Yee was ambushed and shot multiple times in the back of the head in an execution-style killing.
The attack happened in broad daylight in the marina's parking lot. He was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he died a short time later.
The murder of one of their own sent a shockwave through the Miami Police Department. Lieutenant John Buhrmaster told his detectives, "I can't express to you guys how serious this is, and I can't express to you how important this is, to solve this case. Folks, this is one of ours. I mean it. This is one of our family." Investigators explored theories that Yee may have been targeted for sharing information with law enforcement about drug and migrant smuggling operations along the river. A year prior, federal agents had raided the marina, and rumors circulated that Yee had been the one who tipped them off.
The investigation was intense. Detectives released a composite sketch of a short-haired man with a goatee and information about a silver, four-door Toyota Corolla seen at the marina. A crucial piece of evidence was recovered at the scene: an orange juice bottle. Investigators believed the killer had used the plastic bottle as a makeshift silencer for the murder weapon. Forensic analysis of the bottle yielded a fingerprint and a DNA profile that eventually led to a suspect.
The DNA matched Rafael Toirac-Aguilera, a man living in New Jersey. His girlfriend later told police that she and Toirac-Aguilera had driven from New Jersey to Miami in a silver Toyota Corolla in July 2009 to visit friends. She said he was gone for hours on the day of Yee's murder. When Miami detectives traveled to New Jersey to question Toirac-Aguilera, who was already jailed on unrelated charges, he denied being in Miami on July 10, claiming he was at his job at a body shop.
In July 2010, Toirac-Aguilera was extradited to Florida and indicted by a grand jury for first-degree murder. After years of legal delays, his trial began. In March 2016, a jury found Rafael Toirac-Aguilera, then 39, guilty of the first-degree murder of Robert Yee. The following month, on April 22, 2016, a judge sentenced him to life in prison with no possibility of parole. "I have no sympathy for you, sir," the judge told him during sentencing.
Yee's widow, daughter, and grandchildren were present in the courtroom. Though the pain was still raw, they expressed a sense of relief that justice had been served. "Not only did he brutally murder my father but he has caused so much pain," his daughter Debbie Guzman said. His wife, Maricel, added, "Justice has been done and we're at peace, a little bit at peace right now." Miami Police Chief Rodolfo Llanes also spoke after the sentencing, stating of Toirac-Aguilera, "We judged him in man's law, but he's still got another judgment day coming to him and I really hope there's a special place in hell for him." The case is considered closed with the conviction and sentencing of the man responsible for the murder.
