A California man once accused of disguising himself with a mask resembling a young White man during a string of burglaries now faces charges of luring victims through dating apps and killing them, prosecutors said Monday.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office charged Rockim Prowell, 34, of Inglewood, with two counts of murder and a special circumstance allegation of multiple murders. Prosecutors also filed charges of attempted murder, carjacking, second-degree burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, and other felonies.
According to investigators, Prowell met his first victim, Miguel Angel King, 51, through an online dating app on July 20, 2021. Prosecutors said Prowell fatally shot King and stole his car, which was later found near his home with forensic evidence linking him to the killing. Authorities discovered King’s remains weeks later in the Angeles National Forest.
Two years later, Prowell allegedly lured another man, Robert Gutierrez, 53, to a meeting near his home on Aug. 21, 2023. Gutierrez’s family reported him missing two days later. Police arrested Prowell last week and said they found Gutierrez’s car in his garage, along with additional evidence tying him to the case. Gutierrez’s body has never been recovered.
Prosecutors said Prowell struck again on Feb. 22, 2025, when he invited a 40-year-old man to a location four miles from his home. Prowell allegedly bound the victim, beat him with a baseball bat, and stole his wallet. The man escaped, but Prowell allegedly pursued him in a car, hitting him and breaking his leg.
“These were predatory acts that showed a total disregard of life,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. “Imagine the terror these victims felt after believing they were meeting someone through a dating app, only to face inexplicable violence.”
Police revealed that Prowell is currently on probation for burglary convictions tied to a series of masked break-ins in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles between 2019 and 2021. Investigators linked him to more than 30 burglaries, during which he wore a hyper-realistic mask resembling a young White man. They later found the mask in a vehicle he was driving.
Authorities have not said whether Prowell used masks in the dating app attacks.
If convicted, Prowell faces either the death penalty or life in prison without parole. Prosecutors said they will decide later whether to pursue capital punishment.
The Beverly Hills Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the Los Angeles DA’s Office declined to comment further.
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