In the afternoon of April 11, 2023, 22-year-old Zhakira Bailey and a friend arrived on the 2500 block of North 10th Street in North Philadelphia to pick up another friend who needed a ride. Shortly before 4 p.m., what should have been a simple act of kindness turned into a tragedy. As Zhakira was walking away from a man later identified as Jahir Williams-Hill, he allegedly opened fire, shooting her multiple times.
Police officers who were in the area for reports of a person with a gun
were flagged down by a civilian and discovered the unresponsive young woman. Zhakira was suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to her body. She was rushed to Temple University Hospital, but her injuries proved to be fatal, and she was pronounced dead. According to her family, she was shot ten times in the back, with a total of thirteen shots fired, three of which grazed her.
In the wake of the shooting, the Philadelphia Police Department launched an investigation and quickly identified 22-year-old Jahir Williams-Hill as the suspect. Authorities have charged him with murder, weapons charges, and other related offenses and have sought the public's help in locating him. Described as being 5'10' and weighing 180 pounds, Williams-Hill remains at large.
Zhakira's mother has made public pleas for anyone with information about Williams-Hill's whereabouts to come forward, expressing her desire for justice for her daughter. In a tragic irony, family members have stated that Williams-Hill had been working as a mentor to young children, aiming to steer them away from the very gun violence that he is now accused of perpetrating. The community is left to mourn the loss of a young woman who was described as loving children and being loved everywhere she went.
