Episode 160: The Murder of Dr. Hani Zaki
Hani M. Zaki was born in New York City in 1959 to Egyptian Muslim immigrant parents. His home life was described as explosive with hostility between his parents. Despite this troubling atmosphere, Hani grew up exceeding expectations in school, and eventually went on to graduate from the El Azhar University Medical School in Cairo, Egypt in 1975. He then came back to America, where he completed a clinical training program at Brown University in 1978, followed by finishing his residency at Rhode Island Hospital. From here, his resume only got more impressive as he dove into his chosen specialty, otolaryngology. He not only was published in several medical journals but was a member of thirteen medical societies. He also was a diplomat of the American Board of Otolaryngology, as well as a fellow for several other organizations, including the International College of Physicians and Surgeons. When he wasn’t running one of his several practices throughout Rhode Island, he was working as an assistant clinical professor at Brown Medical School and Tufts University’s School of Medicine.
In 1980, Dr. Zaki had been working at the Institute of Mental Health when he met a beautiful young nurse named Deborah, and it wasn’t long before the pair were falling for one another. In 1985, the two were married. By 1987, Deborah was pregnant with twins, a little boy and a little girl. Unfortunately, she went into labor three months prematurely, and as a result, their first son died of complications. Their daughter, Nadia, survived, but suffered a brain injury. This tragedy nearly drove the couple to get a divorce, as losing a firstborn son in Dr. Zaki’s culture was quite troubling. However, the couple reconciled, and eventually went on to have another child, a boy, several years later.
Dr. Zaki was described as being a friendly, gregarious man who was well-loved by his patients. His practices were always booked for months out because he was so popular and well-received. Despite this, he did have several malpractice lawsuits against him over the course of his career, which were often resolved, and his medical license was reinstated within short periods of time. Additionally, because of the stress of his job, Dr. Zaki would come home from his long days at work and tend to let his frustration out on his wife, who tended to see the less friendly and more volatile side of the doctor, who was known to be more strict and controlling. At home, Deborah was permitted from keeping her own bank account.
On April 10th, 2001, Deborah had spent the whole day running errands. She had dropped the two children off at school before meeting up with friends for lunch. She picked up her daughter from school, took her to an appointment, and brought her son to a tutor. It wasn’t until around 4:30 that afternoon when the small family came home to find some rising level of panic. They were greeted by Deborah’s mother, who had come over to walk the dog. She urged Deborah to leave immediately and to take the kids to a friend’s house, and to call her once they were there. Following her mother’s instructions, Deborah learned that her mother had discovered Dr. Hani Zaki dead in his bed. He had a single gunshot wound to the back of his head.
The investigation into the prominent doctor’s death was quick. Many suspects were looked into right away, with investigators considering all of their options from every angle. Could it have been a disgruntled patient, angry about the outcome of a malpractice lawsuit, or upset about a diagnosis? Or could it have been retaliation, as Dr. Zaki was known to be close friends with Raymond Patriarca Jr. of New England mob boss fame? Did he have an unpaid debt that he needed to answer for? Or was it Deborah, the innocent wife of the rich doctor, who had switched careers from nursing to interior designer and was now living in a luxurious mansion with everything she needed?
While the police looked into the former suspects, they focused on the latter most of all. They took in every bit of information they could from family and insiders, learning of how Dr. Zaki was perhaps not as kind at home as he was at the office. One of Dr. Zaki’s nephews came forward to police with a theory of Deborah having an affair, which was potential motive for murder, although that accusation was unfounded. The police looked at what she stood to gain from his death, like all of his money, another great motive for murder. To their dismay, however, they discovered that Deborah had signed a prenuptial agreement that only entitled her to a single payment of $75k, and nothing else. Not only this, but Deborah had a solid alibi, and denied killing her husband.
To this day, Dr. Hani Zaki’s murder remains unsolved.
Image sources:
turnto10.com - “Mansion murder: Targeted killing of Providence doctor remains unsolved”