Witnesses tell of arsenal in slain Rohnert Park man’s apartment

A Rohnert Park man allegedly slain by a co-worker’s jealous boyfriend kept an arsenal in his apartment that included pistols, a crossbow and a collection of Samurai swords, witnesses said Tuesday.

The cache of weapons kept by Roy “R.J.” Kauwe, 22, was expected to support a self-defense argument for Daniel Dieters, 26, of Rohnert Park, who is accused of stabbing Kauwe to death in the apartment on March 20.

However, after a two-day preliminary hearing, Judge Jamie Thistlethwaite ruled there was sufficient evidence to try Dieters on a murder charge. He will return to court Nov. 4 to set a trial date.

Tuesday’s hearing focused on testimony from detectives describing what they found at the Laguna Avenue apartment.

Dieters allegedly called 911 to say he killed Kauwe. Kauwe was lying dead on his kitchen floor with stab wounds to his neck and one arm outstretched, Rohnert Park police Officer Nicolas Labonte testified.

A folding knife lay on the counter and a loaded .45-caliber pistol was on a bed in the other room, said Scott Dunn, a retired Sonoma County sheriff’s detective who is advising Rohnert Park police in the investigation.

Another knife with blood on it lay on a pile of clothes in the bedroom while a gun safe held 24 more knives, metal knuckles, a rifle and more pistols, Dunn said.

A 12-gauge shotgun was outside the safe along with a crossbow, Dunn said.

The collection of five swords was mounted to a wall near the kitchen, he said.

Dieters’ lawyer, Daniel Russo, questioned Dunn and other detectives about the arsenal. He suggested Kauwe was armed with a knife and later argued Dieters showed no premeditation or deliberation.

He stopped short of arguing it was self-defense but said outside court he would make that case at trial.

Prosecutors have alleged otherwise. They put on witnesses who testified Dieters was angry that his girlfriend had fallen for Kauwe. Dieters’ girlfriend, Kayla Lindsay, testified Monday that Dieters broke a coffee table in their apartment in an argument.

She said Dieters went to Kauwe’s apartment after she told him she was leaving him for her Costco co-worker. She tried to warn her new love interest. But she said she arrived at his apartment in time to see Dieters climbing off his body and admitting he killed him.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. ?On Twitter @ppayne.