Zakkee Steven Alhakim, Rachel King, Julie Jean (Image of King via Facebook; images of suspects Montgomery County DA)
The investigation into the Philadelphia-area Dunkin' drive-thru shooting of an elementary school teacher in front of her 11-year-old son has resulted in two arrests, and prosecutors believe one of the suspects had an affair with the victim's longtime boyfriend.
Rachel King was shot multiple times and killed in Cheltenham Township at the age of 35 on the morning of April 11 as she sat in the driver's seat of her Ford Edge and as her son, identified by family as Jalen, sat in the back seat of the car.
As Law&Crime reported when the case first broke, investigators were following leads about an armed, "thin" Black male wearing a hooded sweatshirt and driving a silver sedan. The suspected shooter, authorities now say, is 33-year-old Philadelphia resident Zakkee Steven Alhakim. But who is Alhakim to King? It's complicated, but according to Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele, Alhakim is the cousin to the father of his co-defendant's three children. The co-defendant, 34-year-old Julie Jean, allegedly had an affair with King's longtime boyfriend William Hayes. When that affair ended, prosecutors said, Jean had murder in mind.
"This cold-blooded killing of Rachel King was a targeted murder of an innocent person, planned by these two defendants and horrifically carried out in front of King's son," DA Steele said in a statement. "It is a tragic killing of a good person, all because of an ended affair."
The investigation established that the silver sedan they were previously searching for was a Mercury Sable.
Rachel King murder suspect's vehicle (Montgomery County DA)
"Cellphone evidence and surveillance video showed that Alhakim had previously been outside of King's residence in the days leading up to the murder and had watched her movements. On the morning of the murder, the investigation found that when King pulled her vehicle into a line of traffic in the Dunkin' Donuts drive-thru lane, defendant Alhakim parked the Mercury Sable a short distance away, then walked to the driver's side window of King's vehicle and shot her multiple times, killing her," prosecutors said in a press release. "Alhakim returned to his vehicle and fled the scene. The day after the murder, detectives located additional surveillance video on the route from King's residence to the Dunkin' Donuts, which clearly showed the Mercury Sable's license plate was PA #DYR-9012."
But even more damning than all of this, prosecutors indicated, was the connection of the suspects through purchase of the Mercury Sable just two weeks before the shooting.
"The investigation found that Alhakim and Jean were connected through the Mercury Sable driven by Alhakim. Alhakim obtained the vehicle on March 30, 2023, less than two weeks before the murder, when Alhakim and Jean went together to buy it at a shop on 61st Street in Philadelphia. The vehicle was purchased in Julie Jean's name," prosecutors added.
Jean, of Elkins Park, allegedly carried on an affair with King's boyfriend William Hayes and launched a harassment campaign after he ended it. Prosecutors say that there's substantial evidence that the two suspects communicated before the shooting and planned it over several weeks.
"Cellphone evidence found that Jean added Alhakim's phone number under 'Zah' to her contacts in mid-February, and they communicated and met multiple times leading up to the murder. Very soon after Jean saved Alhakim's contact info, Alhakim saved a screen capture to his phone of a Google map of the victim's apartment complex, with a pin marking King's exact residence and a red arrow showing a route to travel directly to the victim's residence," prosecutors said. "Also of note on Alhakim's phone were two photographs. One was the victim's photo displayed on a cellphone held by a female, believed to be Jean. The photo was taken on Feb. 25, 2023, at 2:17 p.m., less than 30 minutes after Alhakim shared his real- time location with Jean for them to meet up."
An aerial view of the Dunkin' drive-thru scene where Rachel King was shot and killed. (Fox 29/screengrab)
A "photo montage" of King was also allegedly found on the suspected shooter's phone.
Alleged attempts to destroy evidence — through the deletion of texts — were found out.
Jean is accused of deleting 787 texts "just 13 minutes prior" to being interviewed by police on April 12 — the day after the "targeted murder." Investigators said alleged last-ditch cover-up attempt was a failure. They also suggested that Jean sent Alhakim an easily decoded CashApp message hours after the murder.
"It was a payment of $5, with the emoji message that is interpreted to mean 'link up, message me, no phones, that's it,'" prosecutors said.
The suspect vehicle was also connected to an April 7th murder on Broad Street in Philadelphia, authorities said.
Alhakim was arrested after crashing that vehicle while fleeing Philly cops, prosecutors said. Investigators said they learned that the suspected murder weapon — a "ghost gun" — was a ballistics "match" for both the King murder and the second slaying.
The "ghost gun" in question appeared in a photo on the suspected shooter's cellphone, authorities said.
"I couldn't believe it, honestly," Rachel King's brother Allen King III told FOX 29 in an emotional interview. "There was a disbelief that someone would go this far for a failed relationship. It's like, get over it."
He said he found out about the shooting from his nephew Jalen, who called.
"I truly hope the governor signs off on the death penalty," Allen said. "They knew exactly that my nephew was in the car. They made a very clear choice."
"I don't know how anyone does that," he said. "You just don't take a mother away from a child over a relationship. Over a guy? There's a million men in this city. Why?"
Rachel King's funeral was Saturday, her brother said.
King, a pastor's daughter, taught for a decade at Grover Cleveland Elementary Schools, Mastery Charter Schools said in a statement after her death.
"This morning, a teacher from mastery's Grover Cleveland Elementary was the victim of a fatal shooting in Philadelphia. We send our deepest condolences to her family and loved ones," said the school's statement. "We are devastated by the loss of an extraordinary teacher, who spent the last 10 years working with our students and their families."
King's pastor father Allen King Jr. told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the family is "praying for swift justice."
"Because there are consequences to actions and behaviors," he reportedly said. "And we want justice as it is described by the laws of our land, to be in full effect."
A moratorium on the death penalty has been in place in Pennsylvania for nearly a decade — and the ACLU said that the commonwealth hasn't executed anyone since 1999, the end of the 20th century.
In February, Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) announced that he would follow the policy of his gubernatorial predecessor and not resume executions.
"When an execution warrant comes to my desk, I will sign a reprieve each and every time," he said. "The Commonwealth shouldn't be in the business of putting people to death. Period. I believe that in my heart. This is a fundamental statement of morality. Of what's right and wrong. And I believe Pennsylvania must be on the right side of this issue."
Both suspects face first-degree murder, third-degree murder, and conspiracy counts, however, that would put them behind bars for life if they are convicted as charged. Alhakim faces an additional charge for allegedly possessing an instrument of crime. Both suspects are held without bond — Jean at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility and Alhakim at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility.
Follow Law&Crime:
