SCRANTON — A Benton Twp. man accused of fatally shooting a co-worker at Lowe’s on Viewmont Drive waived his preliminary hearing Friday.
Christopher Wasnetsky, 36, is charged with first- and third-degree murder after he shot Jeff Moeller while at work the morning of June 14, according to a criminal complaint.
His case will move to arraignment in Lackawanna County Court, though nothing is scheduled yet.
Wasnetsky told investigators he brought a handgun to work, intending to shoot Moeller, who he claimed had been harassing him. Wasnetsky told officers he had reached out to the business’s management to report the situation, to no avail, police said.
Wasnetsky appeared in a wheelchair before District Judge George Seig alongside Patrick Casey, one of his attorneys.
Casey assured Seig that Wasnetsky understood the waiver, explaining that one of his attorneys had met with him on Thursday to provide a full explanation of the proceeding.
When asked by the judge if he understood, Wasnetsky quietly indicated he did.
Casey told Seig that in a somewhat “unique” situation, Lackawanna County Judge Margaret Moyle granted a petition to quash subpoenas for five Lowe’s employees set to testify at the preliminary hearing.
The petition, a formal request to declare proposed testimony legally inappropriate or invalid, was filed on behalf of Julina Beck, William Bilski, Coby Leleaux, Eric Mitchell and Robert Pritchyk.
Court records indicate attorney Mary Laird, of Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP, Chicago, represents Lowe’s Home Centers LLC.
The decision does not disqualify the five from testifying at trial.
Bloody scene
Wasnetsky called in the shooting, stating, “I’d like to report a shooting at the Dickson City Lowe’s. I was the person that did it,” according to the complaint.
Scranton police officers responded to Lowe’s on Viewmont Drive at 12:36 a.m., according to a criminal complaint.
Police said they found Moeller on the ground in a pool of blood amid multiple bullet casings. Moeller suffered multiple gunshot wounds.
There was a semiautomatic handgun, a Springfield 9 mm, on the ground near a shopping cart about 30 feet from the victim. The handgun appeared to be unloaded. There was a live round on the ground and a magazine next to the handgun.
Officers transported Moeller to Geisinger Community Medical Center in Scranton, where he was pronounced dead.
Officers found Wasnetsky at the entrance to the store, arrested him without incident and took him to police headquarters.
Wasnetsky told police he had approached Moeller while he was working on a machine and shot him in the chest without warning. He said Moeller fell to the ground and asked for help.
Wasnetsky told police he didn’t want Moeller to suffer, so he shot him again, in the head and chest.
“The safety of our associates and customers is our top priority, and we are deeply saddened by this senseless act of violence,” Meagan Bernstein, senior director of external communications for Lowe’s Companies Inc., said in an email following the shooting. “We’re working closely with law enforcement … as it’s an active investigation.”
Moeller family grieves
A GoFundMe page, set up by Christina Moeller to raise money for Keisha Moeller, Jeff Moeller’s wife, and family, has raised $23,700 toward a $26,000 goal and remains active.
Moeller (SUBMITTED)
Christina Moeller, Jeff Moeller’s sister, alleged that her brother had reached out to Lowe’s human resources department because of ongoing concerns about Wasnetsky.
“While working the job he was so proud of at Lowe’s in Pennsylvania, he was shot and killed by a coworker—a coworker he had reported multiple times to Human Resources due to ongoing concerns,” she wrote. “To our knowledge, the individual had been making troubling comments directed at Jeffrey. Despite Jeffrey’s repeated reports, nothing was done.”
Originally Published: October 24, 2025 at 2:14 PM EDT