Two Scranton men face drug charges
Two Scranton men face drug charges after a meeting with a confidential informant and a traffic stop led to arrests.
On Thursday, Officer James Petrucci of the Scranton Police Street Crimes Unit and Detective Joseph Gianacopoulos of the county district attorney’s office, a member of the Gang Gun Reduction Intelligence Project, met with a confidential informant who discussed their involvement with a Black male known as “Smoke” — later identified as Rayshon Duncan — the target of the investigation, according to a criminal complaint.
The informant told investigators “Smoke” is a “middleman” for crack cocaine transactions, police said.
The informant contacted Duncan by cellphone to meet at a disclosed location to purchase drugs, per the complaint.
Investigators outfitted the informant with a recording device and gave them money to make a purchase, police said.
Duncan told the informant he would be waiting for his supplier to complete the transaction, investigators said.
Police observed Duncan entering a black Ford Taurus on the 300 block of Cedar Avenue and the vehicle began traveling south. Duncan was later seen exiting the vehicle at 300 Alder St., police said.
When investigators attempted to take Duncan into custody, he started running north on Schimpf Court and began throwing money, drugs and cellphones, per the complaint.
After a struggle, an investigator placed Duncan in handcuffs.
Investigators recovered two cellphones, including the target phone, a small plastic bag containing suspected crack cocaine, and money which Duncan discarded, police said.
As Duncan was being taken into custody, officers from the Street Crimes Unit conducted a traffic stop on the black Ford Taurus and the driver — later identified as Paul Colon — was detained, per the complaint.
Duncan admitted to being a crack cocaine user and that Colon is his supplier, police said.
Duncan told police he gave Colon $150 for 2 grams of crack cocaine, per the complaint.
Duncan, 35, 333 E. Locust St., Apt./Suite Rear 1, was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, criminal use of a communication facility, criminal attempt to deliver a controlled substance, resisting arrest and related counts.
He remains in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Colon, 44, 210 Meridian Ave., was charged with unlawful delivery of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia..
He remains in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $125,000 bail.
A preliminary hearing for both men is scheduled for May 30 at 9:30 a.m.
