Georgia Mother Killed In Murder-Suicide By Ex-Boyfriend, 4-Year-Old Son Orphaned

A young mother was killed in a murder-suicide in Lithia Springs, Georgia. Twenty-nine-year-old Kaleshia Lyons was killed by her ex-boyfriend, 34-year-old Harold Dakers on Nov. 4, according to 11Alive News.

Douglas County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to a 911 call and arrived to find Lyons dead around 9 p.m. The authorities said that she died from blunt force trauma to the face. Douglas County Sheriff Tim Pounds said that Dakers killed Lyons in the morning hours. Lyons and Dakers shared a 4-year-old son, Gavin.

A manhunt ensued for Dakers until the police received a tip on Nov. 8. Dakers was seen heading into a wooded area near North Lassiter Street and Villa Trave. Deputies arrived at the wooded area and saw Dakers but soon lost him after he pulled a handgun and ran away. They located him again after they heard a gunshot. The deputies found Dakers dead lying in a creek, having appeared to have shot himself with his handgun.

Dakers was accused of sexually assaulting Lyons inside the apartment he shared with his mother in Villa Rica on June 19 and was arrested. He was on bond after allegedly choking Lyons unconscious and raping her at the Hampton Court Apartments.

Dakers was charged with aggravated assault, false imprisonment and theft by taking but was released on bond, against the wishes of the Coweta County District Attorney’s Office. Once his bond was granted, the DA requested Daker wear an electronic bracelet, but the judge did not require the ankle monitor.

A GoFundMe page for Lyons’ funeral expenses noted that she would be laid to rest next to her mother. A message on the page remembered Lyons as a “beautiful soul” and “wonderful mother.”

“Kaleshia Lyons was brutally murdered Friday, November 4th, by the father of her child, who then proceeded to take his own life, leaving their child, Gavin, without both of his parents,” read the statement. “Kaleshia was a beautiful soul and wonderful mother taken from this world far too soon. This fundraiser supports Kaleshia’s family with costs associated with her funeral, burial and care for Gavin.”