Second teen to be charged as adult in murder of Lyft driver

DAYTON — A second teen accused of murdering a local Lyft driver and carjacking another driver in 2022 will now be tried as an adult.

A motion to transfer the case against Tylan Peaks, 17, from juvenile court to adult court was granted Wednesday, according to court records filed in the Juvenile Division of the Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.

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In a decision filed Wednesday, a judge ruled that there “is not sufficient time to rehabilitate the child within the juvenile system.”

Peaks, who was 15 at the time of the alleged crimes, is facing multiple counts of murder, aggravated robbery, felonious assault, grand theft of a motor vehicle, and tampering with evidence.

The charges are in connection to the robbery and shooting death of Brandon Cooper, 35, of Beavercreek. He’s the second teen accused of Cooper’s death to have his case transferred to adult court.

Peaks, along with Da’Trayvon Mitchell, was identified as one of the four teens that Cooper picked up before being shot near West Grand Avenue and Ferguson Avenue.

Responding Dayton officers discovered Cooper with at least one gunshot wound to his back and his car crashed into another in the 1000 block of Ferguson Avenue at around 2 a.m. on Jan. 26

Officers found two shell casings at the intersection of West Grand and Ferguson Avenues. It was later learned that Cooper was a Lyft driver and on his way to an address nearby on Cambridge Ave.

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Just an hour before, these four teens requested a Lyft ride from the same account. A female Lyft driver picked up the four passengers who then carjacked her at gunpoint on St. Agnes Avenue. The female was able to escape to a nearby house and request emergency aid, Dayton Police previously told News Center 7.

Further investigation led law enforcement agents to Anna Street where the four suspects and the stolen car were located. A SWAT Team was deployed to extricate the suspects from the residence.

Court records allege Peaks was “known to frequently associate with members of a gang” that has a “history of engaging in criminal activity.” Additionally, he allegedly possessed a firearm and “did use and/or display the firearm in commission of the act(s) charged.”

Mitchell had his case transferred to adult court in December 2022.

We’ll provide updates as we learn more.

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