Jamillah Gales, a 25-year-old woman, was shot and killed late Tuesday night, April 21, 2026, in Northwest Washington, D.C., after police say an argument turned into gunfire. Officers from the Fourth District were called around 10:52 p.m. to the 600 block of Kenyon Street NW for a reported shooting. When they arrived, they found Gales unconscious and not breathing in a rear alley with apparent gunshot wounds. DC Fire and EMS tried to save her, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities later said she had no fixed address.
The killing quickly became even more urgent when detectives learned that Gales had been with her 2-year-old son shortly before the shooting. Because the child was not immediately accounted for, police issued an AMBER Alert early Wednesday morning. Neighbors were alarmed as officers searched the area and went door to door, trying to determine where the boy had gone after his mother was killed. Within about an hour of the alert, the child was found unharmed inside a nearby residence on Kenyon Street and was taken to a hospital as a precaution.
Police said the child was found with the suspected killer and another adult man. That second man was questioned, but investigators later determined he was not involved in the homicide. According to reporting on charging documents, a witness told police that Gales had been staying at the apartment for the previous two nights and that the suspect stayed there “on and off.” The witness said Gales and the suspect left the apartment together to go to a store that night, leaving the toddler behind; about an hour later, the suspect returned without her and allegedly said Gales had gone to a different store.
Authorities identified the suspect as Hakeem Jones, 28, of Northwest D.C. He was arrested on April 22 after police located him at the apartment where the child was found. MPD initially announced that Jones had been charged with second-degree murder while armed, but prosecutors later upgraded the case to first-degree murder while armed during court proceedings. A D.C. Superior Court judge found probable cause to hold him, and he was ordered detained without bond pending further proceedings.
Investigators said surveillance video showed Jones and Gales together in the hours before the killing and entering the alley before what appeared to be a brief physical altercation followed by the shooting. Police also said clothing and a black bag found in the apartment where Jones was arrested appeared similar to items seen on the suspect in nearby surveillance footage. Jones’ attorney argued in court that Jones was not the person wearing a black ski mask in the video and that the items recovered from the apartment were not connected to him.
Police described the shooting as the result of a “simple argument” that escalated into gunfire, leaving Gales’ young son without his mother. Investigators had not publicly determined a motive or fully explained the relationship between Gales and Jones. Prosecutors also said Jones had prior convictions for unlawfully carrying a firearm and had been incarcerated until March 6, 2026, less than two months before Gales was killed. Jones was expected back in court on May 6 as the case continued.
