A 74-year-old San Diego man already charged in a 2023 killing now faces three additional murder counts linked to cold cases spanning more than three decades, the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office announced on June 10. Dwight William Rhone pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment and is being held without bail.
Prosecutors allege Rhone is responsible for the deaths of four men. The earliest case dates back to December 1993, when Heriberto Ruiz was found strangled in an alley near the 3500 block of Acacia Street.
In September 2002, Ronald Johnken was discovered in Chollas Creek near 3300 National Avenue; the medical examiner ruled his death a result of blunt-force trauma to the head.
More recently, Rhone was charged in the October 2023 murder of Bernardo Moreno, who died from a gunshot wound to the base of the skull and was found in burned debris near the Interstate 5 and State Route 905 interchange. The fourth victim, Michael Brown, was identified after human remains were unearthed in December 2025 beneath a former residence of Rhone on Newton Avenue in San Diego’s Southcrest neighborhood.
The FBI and multiple law enforcement agencies executed a search warrant at the property, leading to the discovery.
District Attorney Summer Stephan described the case as “horrific” and emphasized the office’s commitment to pursuing justice regardless of how much time has passed. “Our commitment to holding violent offenders accountable remains as strong today as it was on the day these crimes were committed,” Stephan said in a news release.
Investigators are still assessing whether Rhone may be linked to additional missing persons or unidentified remains. They are specifically seeking information about Danice Galloway, born December 15, 1955, whose body was found on May 1, 1989, in an alley at 3700 Main Street in San Diego, and Antenogenes Gomez Velasquez, born July 16, 1981, last seen in 2021 and known to have lived at 3456 Newton Avenue.
Anyone with information is urged to contact San Diego police at 619-531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
Rhone is scheduled to appear in court again on March 24. The investigation remains ongoing.