DATE: September 17, 2026

CASE: Michael Wheat & Dominique Perez  (Case #23FE018274)

PROSECUTOR: Principal Criminal Attorney Scott Schweibish, Homicide Unit

On September 16, 2026, Michael Wheat was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder with the special circumstance of committing murder while in the commission of a residential burglary.  Wheat was further found guilty of first-degree residential burglary with an enhancement for the victim being present in the home, as well as being found guilty of arson and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Dominique Perez pled guilty to first-degree burglary with an at-home enhancement making this a violent strike.

On November 1, 2023, Michael Wheat broke into the home of the victim, Michael Plog, and began stealing items.  Over the next few hours, surveillance video from neighboring homes captured him going into the house several times.  When Dominique Perez joined Wheat, they are both captured wearing hoods, masks and gloves as they entered the house and exited with a crate of items.  Soon after they entered the house again, the victim is captured on video arriving home.  Less than 10 minutes later, both defendants are seen leaving the house.  At this same time, the victim placed a phone call to a relative where he can be heard moaning and screaming in pain.  Approximately eight hours later, surveillance video showed two people arriving at the victim’s house and as they leave, a large fire erupts in the entryway to the home.  Responding fire personnel extinguished the fire and found the victim deceased in the home with multiple gunshot wounds.  The autopsy revealed that the victim died from a gunshot wound to his chest. Wheat was identified through the surveillance video and arrested. Wheat then identified Perez as the second party involved.  Perez stated he believed the house was abandoned, and that Wheat shot the victim.  Wheat stated he went back to the house alone, poured gasoline throughout the house, and then lit it on fire.

Wheat faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole.  Perez will be sentenced to 4 years in prison.  Sentencing is set for November 5, 2026, at 1:30 PM in Department 16B before the Honorable Shelleyanne Chang.