An Archbald man fatally shot a Scranton man he planned to rob during a drug deal Sunday in the borough, state police charge.
Kayden Christopher Jurbala, 20, planned to buy marijuana from Tyvon Ash, 19, using counterfeit $100 bills, state police said in a criminal complaint. Ash traveled to Laurel Street Park to sell a quarter pound of the drug.
When Ash realized the deception, he attempted to drive away. Jurbala fired a single shot from a stolen handgun through the open passenger-side window, state police said. The bullet hit Ash in the back.
Ash crashed his vehicle into a utility pole on Laurel Street. Jurbala discarded the handgun and fled with a 16-year old boy, who was also involved in the transaction. The gun, 9mm Glock 43X, was stolen from Blakely.
Archbald police officers who responded to the shooting Sunday shortly after midnight found a wounded Ash slumped over the center console of a crashed 2025 Mazda CX-30.
Ash was pronounced dead at Geisinger Community Medical Center. Lackawanna County Coroner Timothy Rowland said Ash was shot once in the chest and ruled his death a homicide.
State police charged Jurbala with felony criminal homicide, two counts of robbery with the intent to inflict serious bodily injury and receiving stolen property.
Lackawanna County District Attorney Brian Gallagher said Tuesday that Ash’s death was senseless and unnecessary, in a statement announcing the charges against Jurbala.
“A young man is dead over a robbery involving marijuana and counterfeit money — a series of terrible decisions that ended in tragedy,” Gallagher said. “One impulsive decision involving a firearm left one person dead, devastated multiple families, and forever changed the lives of everyone involved.”
Preliminary hearing information for Jurbala was not immediately available Tuesday. The 16-year-old boy with him will be charged in juvenile court, Gallagher said.
Additional charges may be forthcoming as investigators continue to review evidence, Gallagher said.
Ash graduated from Scranton High School last year and earned a plumbing certification at the Career Technology Center of Lackawanna County, according to a GoFundMe page set up to cover his funeral expenses.
He also worked at Cooper’s Seafood House. Co-owner Paul Cooper said Monday Ash was beloved by both colleagues and customers.
Young people who carry guns too often resort to violence instead of walking away, Gallagher said. Settling disputes or disagreements with guns is unacceptable, he said.
“That culture has no place in Lackawanna County,” he said. “Every homicide leaves behind grieving families and a community forced to deal with the consequences of completely avoidable violence.”