A U.S. Navy lieutenant has been charged with first-degree murder in the killing of his pregnant girlfriend. Emmanuel Dewayne Coble, 27, has also been charged with use of a firearm in the commission of murder.
Raquiah Paulette King, 20, was found dead on July 21 in Hanover County off the side of the road with a gunshot wound.
King was 3 Months Pregnant with Coble's Child
Hanover Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. James Cooper said Coble and King were in a relationship and King was three months pregnant at the time of her death.
"After an extensive investigation involving multiple agencies, investigators with the Hanover County Sheriff's Office were able to quickly identify a suspect in this case," the Hanover County Sheriff's Office said in a press release.
Coble and King Argued About the Child's Abortion
A GoFundMe page set up to raise funds to cover King's funeral costs stated that she moved to Virginia to be with a man who is presumably Coble. The man allegedly ordered King to have an abortion, but she refused, leading to multiple arguments.
"One day, Raquiah and her boyfriend went to the abortion clinic, but once inside, Raquiah changed her mind, and her boyfriend became furious. They then got into a fight outside in the car on the way home, the killer killed her and her unborn baby," the GoFundMe page also alleges.
Coble is charged with first-degree murder. Cooper told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that charges are pending regarding King's fetus. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for December 6.
Coble was stationed in Norfolk and was working on the USS John C. Stennis, the newspaper reported. "The Navy is cooperating with law enforcement agencies involved with this case, and we extend our deepest sympathy to the family and friends of the victim," Lt. Commander Robert Myers, public affairs officer for the Commander of the Naval Air Force Atlantic fleet said in a statement to the Times-Dispatch.
