Suspect Faces Potential Death Penalty in Case Involving Two Murders
A 34-year-old Inglewood man has been charged with murdering two men and attempting to kill a third in a string of violent crimes allegedly connected to an online dating app, prosecutors announced Tuesday.
Rockim Prowell, born Dec. 18, 1990, faces two counts of murder with the special circumstance allegation of multiple murders, along with one count of attempted murder, two counts each of carjacking and second-degree burglary, and one count of assault with a deadly weapon, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Prowell was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Department 30 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles. If convicted as charged, he could face life in prison without parole or the death penalty, with a decision on whether to pursue capital punishment to be made later.
Prosecutors allege that on July 20, 2021, Prowell met Miguel Angel King, 51, after the two connected through an online dating platform. Prowell is accused of fatally shooting King and stealing his vehicle.
King’s car was discovered more than a week later, several miles from Prowell’s home. Investigators said forensic evidence from the vehicle linked Prowell to the killing.
Nearly a month after the meeting, on Aug. 14, 2021, King’s remains were located in the Angeles National Forest.
On Aug. 21, 2023, Prowell allegedly met Robert Gutierrez, 53, about a mile from his home after the two had also interacted through the same dating app. Gutierrez’s family reported him missing two days later. His body has never been found, authorities said.
When police arrested Prowell last week, they discovered Gutierrez’s car inside the defendant’s garage, along with additional evidence tying Prowell to the suspected homicide.
The third incident occurred on Feb. 22, 2025, when Prowell allegedly met a 40-year-old man through the dating app. Authorities say Prowell bound the victim, stole his wallet, and beat him with a baseball bat.
The man escaped, but Prowell reportedly chased him in a vehicle, striking him and breaking his leg. The victim survived and later identified Prowell to investigators.
“Imagine the terror and horror these victims felt after being duped into believing they were meeting for one reason, only to face inexplicable violence,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. “These were predatory acts that showed a total disregard of life. This suspect has now been stopped in his tracks because of the diligent and tenacious work done by investigators at both the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.”
At the time of the charges, Prowell was already on probation in two separate burglary cases, which involved a series of break-ins committed in Beverly Hills and Los Angeles between 2019 and 2021, officials said. Prowell wore a mask with lighter skin to hide his identity.
The case is being prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney John Lewin of the Cold Case Unit within the Major Crimes Division. It remains under joint investigation by the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau.
