Fatal machete attack at Hotel Jermyn
A brutal machete attack at the Hotel Jermyn Apartments in Scranton in early December left two people and a service dog dead and another person with severe injuries.
Lackawanna County District Attorney Brian Gallagher identified the deceased victims as Linda P. Fortuna, 61, and Terry M. Muller, 59, a military veteran. Muller’s service dog, Nayla, was also killed in the “pure evil” attack. The third victim, Marilyn Joan Waller, 66, required hospitalization with severe injuries.
The accused, Michael Willie Marquis Woods, 38, lived on the same sixth floor of the apartment building as his victims. Police found Woods covered in blood and holding the machete outside near the scene shortly after the attack and took him into custody. According to charging documents, Woods attacked Fortuna as she stepped off an elevator, then attacked Muller, throwing her to the ground and stabbing both women in the chest. Waller was attacked with the machete when she opened her apartment door, suffering a “severe chest wound” and a nearly severed hand. Woods told police he had smoked PCP earlier in the day.
Woods faces multiple charges, including two counts of criminal homicide, attempted criminal homicide, aggravated assault and aggravated cruelty to animals. The victims were described by sixth-floor neighbor Paula Taylor as “wonderful people.”
The Hotel Jermyn is a historic downtown landmark that was converted into 85 affordable apartments for older adults and individuals with disabilities.
The Lowe’s in Scranton is shown on Monday afternoon. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Killing at Lowe’s
In mid-June, an employee at the Lowe’s store in Scranton, Christopher Wasnetsky of Dalton, shot and killed his co-worker, Jeff Moeller. After the incident, Wasnetsky called the authorities himself to report the shooting, telling the dispatcher, “I’d like to report a shooting at the Dickson City Lowe’s. I was the person that did it,” according to the criminal complaint. Wasnetsky was later found at the store entrance by Scranton police officers, who arrested him.
Wasnetsky later admitted that he had purchased a handgun and practiced with it in his backyard with the intention of shooting Moeller. He claimed Moeller had been harassing him and that his complaints to others had gone unheeded. When officers arrived at the scene, they found Moeller on the ground with multiple gunshot wounds. A handgun, which appeared to be unloaded, was found nearby, along with a magazine and a live round on the ground.
Wasnetsky, 36, told police he approached Moeller while he was working on a machine and shot him in the chest without any warning. After Moeller fell and asked for help, Wasnetsky claimed he didn’t want him to suffer, so he shot him again in the head and chest. Wasnetsky is charged with first- and third-degree murder
Lowe’s called the shooting a “senseless act of violence.” Meagan Bernstein, senior director of external communications for Lowe’s, stated that the company’s top priority is the safety of its associates and customers and confirmed they are working closely with law enforcement as part of an active investigation.
A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on the 1700 block of North Webster Avenue in Dunmore on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. (SUBMITTED PHOTO)
ICE hits NEPA
While raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement made national headlines in major cities, agents also conducted operations in the region.
In late-October, ICE detained 44-year-old Concepción Castro-Delcid in Dunmore, a Honduran man with a final order of removal. Castro-Delcid was taken into custody during a targeted enforcement operation while he was riding his bike to work on North Webster Avenue. According to ICE, the man had been ordered removed in absentia by an immigration judge on Feb. 23, 2023, after he failed to appear for immigration proceedings related to a 2019 apprehension at the Texas border.
ICE said as they approached, Castro-Delcid “abruptly fled on foot,” running through neighborhood yards and attempting to jump a backyard fence. Following the arrest, Castro-Delcid told authorities that he is the primary caregiver of his minor daughter, who also has a final removal order. ICE’s Juvenile and Family Management Unit began reunification protocols to maintain family unity, coordinating with the Dunmore police and school district, and transport specialists. The agency confirmed that the father and his elementary school-aged daughter were reunited and will be returned to Honduras “expeditiously.”
In a separate incident in July, Nasario Damian Contreras, a restaurateur in the North Pocono area, was detained. ICE agents arrested Contreras during a targeted enforcement operation July 15, an ICE spokesperson said in a statement identifying him as “an illegal alien and citizen of Mexico.” The address at which ICE said the arrest occurred is that of Isabella’s Eatery in Jefferson Twp., one of Contreras’ three North Pocono-area restaurants.
Police block the entrance to the Hideout in Wayne County on Sunday evening. (ROBERT TOMKAVAGE/STAFF PHOTO)
Shooting at the Hideout
In late-September, authorities arrested 26-year-old Lucas Gartrell after a shooting rampage in The Hideout, a gated Wayne County community. Gartrell allegedly shot his parents, Robert and Lisa Gartrell, and killed 55-year-old security officer Jose Alberto Duran Jr. State police captured the suspect about an hour after the initial 911 calls.
According to criminal complaints, the incident began when Gartrell’s parents went to check on their son due to his history of mental health issues. Witnesses reported seeing Gartrell, dressed in tactical gear and armed with a rifle, pursuing his mother before being confronted by an armed neighbor. While his parents were flown to a medical center in stable condition, Duran was pronounced dead at the scene.
When apprehended, Gartrell was found with a handgun, several knives, and a significant amount of ammunition; he later admitted to hiding his rifle inside his residence. He faces multiple charges, including criminal homicide, murder of a law enforcement officer and attempted homicide.
Susquehanna County District Attorney Marion O’Malley and Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher L. Paris answer questions about the Pennsylvania state trooper ambush. (AP Photo/Aimee Dilger)
Susquehanna County shooting
One woman was killed and two Pennsylvania state troopers were injured in Susquehanna County in early August when when 61-year-old Carmine Faino shot and killed his neighbor, 57-year-old Lori Wasko, outside her home in Thompson Township. Faino then ambushed Troopers Joseph Perechinsky and William Jenkins with high-powered rifle fire from a “position of tactical superiority.”
Both troopers sustained serious injuries in the attack; Perechinsky was shot twice in the torso, and Jenkins was shot in both arms. Perechinsky, despite his injuroes, managed to apply tourniquets to his partner’s arms before a third trooper evacuated them from the scene. Faino was ultimately shot and killed by responding police after refusing to comply with commands.
Gov. Josh Shapiro and state officials praised the bravery of the officers, noting that Perechinsky’s quick actions likely saved his partner’s life.