Food Network’s ‘Worst Cooks In America’ Murder Suspect Has To Submit DNA

Ariel Robinson, the former Worst Cooks in America Season 20 winner on the Food Network who stands accused of homicide by child abuse, has been ordered to submit to a DNA test, according to online court records.

Robinson was arrested in January of this year for the death of Victoria Rose Smith, who had been placed in Robinson’s care by the South Carolina Dept. of Social Services. No trial date has been set, but is expected by the summer.

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The accused was the winner of the reality competition Worst Cooks in America on the Food Network. That season’s finale aired Aug. 2, 2020, and saw Robinson win $25,000 and a Food Network cooking set.

The episodes featuring her were subsequently pulled by the network from online and on-demand media in the wake of the arrest.

Victoria Rose Smith was scheduled to be adopted by Robinson five days after her murder.

Jerry Robinson, Ariel Robinson’s husband, has also been charged with homicide by child abuse in the case, but is out on $150,000 bail. His trial is also not scheduled. He is under house arrest with a GPS monitoring syste.

Jerry Robinson told investigators that his wife frequently beat Smith and claimed he was outside of the house when he heard his wife hitting the little girl with a belt on the day she died.

Ariel Robinson later claimed that the girl died from drinking too much water. Smith died from multiple blunt-force injuries after being found unresponsive at the Robinson’s house on the afternoon of Jan. 14, according to the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.

Her adoption by the Robinsons had been scheduled to be formalized five days after her death, according to the Solicitor’s Office.

The order for Ariel Robinson’s DNA collection was issued on Nov. 29, according to court records.

Ariel Robinson has been held without bond at the Greenville County Detention Center in South Carolina.

Four other children who lived with the Robinsons, including two boys biologically related to Victoria, are under state care.

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