Dalton police identify victims, shooter in double murder-suicide

Man accused of killing wife, girlfriend, himself

Dalton police are investigating an alleged double-murder and suicide. Officials say a man shot his wife before getting in the car and traveling to an apartment to kill his girlfriend, then turn the gun on himself.

ATLANTA - Dalton Police have identified the victims of two fatal shootings at separate residences that investigators believe are connected in a tragic murder-suicide case.

What we know:

Authorities say 37-year-old Kevin Andrew Akins of Dalton is suspected of fatally shooting his wife, 35-year-old Rebeca Nicole Akins, at her apartment at 1320 Murray Avenue during the early morning hours of Wednesday, May 21. Police say Akins then drove to another apartment at 1805 Shadow Lane, where he shot and killed his girlfriend, 33-year-old Cindel Mae Rhoden, before turning the gun on himself.

Officers were first called to Rebeca Akins' residence around 6 p.m. May 23, after coworkers reported she had not been seen or heard from in several days. When no one responded at the door, apartment staff allowed officers to enter, where they discovered Rebeca Akins deceased from an apparent gunshot wound to the head.

Detectives launched an immediate investigation and reviewed surveillance footage showing Kevin Akins leaving the Murray Avenue apartment around 6 a.m. on May 21.

Later that evening, investigators tracked Akins’ vehicle to the Shadow Lane apartment complex. As officers awaited a search warrant during the early morning hours of Saturday, they observed a man—later identified as Rhoden’s father—arrive and use a key to enter the apartment. The man exited moments later and called 911, reporting that he had found his daughter and another man dead inside.

Police say evidence indicates that Kevin Akins shot and killed Rhoden before dying by suicide.

According to a GoFundMe account for Cindel Rhoden, she was the mother of two young daughters and was five months pregnant when she was shot and killed. 

Dalton Pointe on Shadow

What they're saying:

Vickey Tinsley lives at the Murray Avenue apartments, just a couple of doors down from where the first murder was committed.

She saw the police response Friday night.

"I just really didn’t know what was going on. I saw the yellow tape and then I saw them towing her car… and it kind of scared me at first because I thought someone did get killed or someone broke into the apartment," she said.

Tinsley was shocked to learn that her neighbor had been killed by her husband.

"Well, it’s kind of scary. Yeah, it really is!" she said.

Tinsley and other neighbors told FOX 5 on Saturday that the area is typically very calm, and they’re not used to seeing homicide investigations.

"It’s very quiet out here. And to have somebody kill somebody and then go kill somebody else, and then kill themselves, it’s like ‘okay, I’m gonna lock my door now,’" Tinsley said.

Tinsley says she didn’t know her neighbor very well; they would just occasionally exchange greetings.

But it was hard for her to see her neighbor’s family so heartbroken Friday night.

"I saw the uncle, because he said ‘that’s my niece.’ And he was very upset," she said.

What we don't know:

It's not clear what led to this devastating series of events.

None of their names will be released until all families have been notified of the tragedy.

What's next:

This investigation is ongoing. More information could be released soon.