Police: Additional man charged in recent homicide, shooter sought
SCRANTON — City police arrested a second suspect in last week’s fatal shooting of a Scranton man Monday.
Quamir Nichola Robinson, 22, of 102 Tall Trees Drive, Dunmore, was charged with criminal homicide and conspiracy to commit homicide in the shooting death of Benjamin Thompson, 35, according to a criminal complaint.
Rahjuan Marquel Morgan, 24, of Scranton, was arrested last week and charged with criminal homicide and criminal conspiracy in the incident.
Police identified Malachi Allah Darden, 19, as the shooter in the incident. They are actively searching for him, a Tuesday police release said.
{div class=”article__section article__section_type_text utility__text”}According to the criminal complaint:{/div}
At about 11:45 p.m. on March 14, officers were called to 1820 Jackson St., where they found Thompson unresponsive in the driver’s seat of his vehicle, covered in blood. As emergency medical were working on Thompson, he began bleeding profusely from the nose and mouth, charges read.
Thompson was taken to the hospital, where medical personnel determined he had been shot in the chest. He died shortly after arrival. Lackawanna County coroner Tim Rowland determined Thompson’s cause of death was a homicide.
A witness told police Thompson left his house at about 10 p.m. to sell Morgan marijuana, charges read.
The witness said she became concerned when Thompson didn’t return and began texting him on his iPhone.
Police were able to access the phone and intercept texts between Morgan and Thompson, which indicated Thompson planned to sell drugs to Morgan, the complaint states.
Morgan requested the two meet in the parking lot of Family Dollar on Jackson Street, police said.
Video surveillance from a nearby residence shows Thompson backing into the parking lot of Family Dollar and being shot. Thompson then fled onto Jackson Street in his Toyota RAV4. He was found dead in the vehicle a few blocks away.
The video shows three men fleeing, with two running north on North Lincoln Avenue and the third running behind a home on North Lincoln Avenue.
The video shows Morgan approaching Thompson on the passenger side, while another man shoots Thompson, charges read.
Police arrested Morgan on May 16 and interviewed him at police headquarters. He told officers he was with Robinson and Darden the night of the homicide and that all three had agreed to rob Thompson of the marijuana when he got there. Morgan said he ordered two quarter pounds of marijuana from Thompson at a cost of $700 for both.
The three also discussed robbing Thompson of cash, charges read.
“They had no money and no intentions of paying the victim for weed,” the complaint states.
Morgan said, as he was standing on the passenger side of the vehicle and Robinson was standing behind the vehicle, he heard Darden rack a semi automatic handgun, charges read. Morgan then reached into the passenger side of Thompson’s vehicle and stole the marijuana, police said,
Darden shot Thompson at close range through the driver’s side window, police said.
On May 16, a witness told police Darden had admitted he shot someone.
Darden is charged with criminal homicide and criminal conspiracy in a homicide.
“Additional suspects have been identified and are considered fugitives,” police said in a release. “Law enforcement are actively attempting to locate those persons.”
Morgan and Robinson remain at Lackawanna County Prison without bail. Both have preliminary hearing scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on May 31 before District Judge Sean Gallagher.
