SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A 74-year-old man named as a person of interest in connection with human remains on Newton Avenue had a troubled past spanning decades, according to court documents and family members who spoke with 10News.
Dwight Rhone is described in court records as a college graduate raised Catholic who performed marriage ceremonies and bereavement services for his community. He was also a skilled tradesman who could speak about faith and overcoming obstacles.
But his older brother painted a different picture when ABC 10News reporter Adam Racusin spoke with him.
"Dwight's not a savory character – he's an unsavory character," Rhone's brother said.
The brother, who asked not to show his face on camera, said the last time he saw Dwight was a few years ago. When ABC 10News asked if he had a picture of his brother, he said no.
"Is it weird all this stuff you're seeing about him? Yeah, but my brother was kind of on seemed like drugs took him out…you know," he said.
The family originally moved to San Diego from the Midwest after a house fire destroyed their Oklahoma café, according to Rhone's brother.
"We had a café in Oklahoma and our house caught on fire and my mother came here to I dunno – bring us out of Oklahoma," he said.
Rhone's troubles began early, his brother confirmed. Court records show Rhone was sent to a youth correctional facility where he experienced frequent assaults, sexual harassment by staff, and indoctrination into prison culture.
Court records say, “The experience was more traumatizing than rehabilitative. The time in CYA clearly did not work for Mr. Rhone, and he went on to commit his most serious offenses from age 18 to age 28.”
Despite the trauma, his brother said the experience helped launch Rhone's career.
"He went to a trade school that was actually a jailhouse – so it made a good bricklayer out of him and a masonry man – and he worked in the union," he said.
But drugs became Rhone's downfall, according to his brother, and no one was safe from becoming his next victim.
"Dwight robbed my house like it wasn't nothing, and I didn't believe it, and I kept letting him come in," his brother said.
The family also allowed Rhone to stay at the house on Newton Avenue, which has now become a crime scene. Rhone's brother said his wife owned the property and let various relatives live there over the years. When she died, the children sold the house, leaving Rhone with nowhere to go.
"It seemed like he was in jail – I dunno about where he was at," his brother said.
Court records confirm Rhone lived his life in and out of jail or prison, with a criminal history dating back at least four decades.
Despite everything Rhone put his family through, his brother said he has found forgiveness.
"I'm a Catholic, and I gotta forgive him, and I have forgiven him, I just didn't want him in my sights – so he didn't take me to hell," he said.
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