GBI: Husband who ran off to Costa Rica with nanny charged with wife’s murder 19 years later

Written by: A. Smith

Published May 23, 2025 @ 6:15 PM ET

COFFEE COUNTY, Ga. – A Georgia man has been arrested and charged in connection with the 2006 killing of his wife, nearly two decades after she was found shot to death inside their family business.

Jon Worrell, 58, of Douglas, Georgia, was taken into custody at his home in Maryville, Missouri, and extradited to Coffee County. He is charged with malice murder, felony murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and aggravated battery in the death of his wife, Doris Worrell.

On Sept. 20, 2006, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was asked to assist the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office after Doris Worrell, 39, was found shot and killed inside Jon’s Sports Park in Douglas. Initial leads suggested a possible robbery or retaliation by a former patron, but the investigation eventually pointed to Jon Worrell as a suspect.

According to investigators, the couple had been experiencing marital issues due to Jon Worrell being in a relationship with the family’s live-in nanny, Paola Yarberry. Authorities say he did not want to pursue a divorce due to concerns about losing custody of his children and began looking for someone to kill his wife.

After Doris’s death, Yarberry was deported to Venezuela due to immigration issues. The GBI said that when the community began suspecting he may have been involved in his wife’s murder, he moved to Fernandina Beach, Florida, and then, a short time later, to Costa Rica, where Yarberry rejoined him. The pair lived together and raised Worrell’s children in Costa Rica.

Two men, Glidden Rodriguez and Brandon Cage, were previously arrested for conspiracy in the case but were later released after prosecutors determined there was not enough evidence to pursue charges. Rodriguez has since died of medical issues.

In recent years, the investigation was reopened. After Worrell and Yarberry ended their relationship, he returned to the U.S., and investigators traveled to Costa Rica, where Yarberry agreed to cooperate. Her statements, along with previously collected evidence and new corroboration, led to the issuance of arrest warrants for Worrell.

Worrell was arrested in Maryville, Missouri, where he currently lives. The GBI was assisted in the arrest by the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime Control, Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, Operation Relentless Pursuit, Nodaway County Sheriff’s Office, and the Maryville Department of Public Safety.

Worrell is currently booked at the Coffee County Jail after having waived extradition in Missouri.