Niko Hostler told police he feared for his life before Christopher Ashbaugh was shot outside their workplace.
SPRINGDALE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A criminal homicide charge filed against a Verona tow truck driver now turns on a brief workplace fight, multiple gunshots and competing accounts of what happened outside a Springdale Township garage.
Niko Hostler, 32, is accused of killing Christopher Ashbaugh at Oaks Auto & Truck Service on Wednesday after Ashbaugh assigned him another call near the end of his shift. Police say the evidence includes Hostler’s statement, witness descriptions and surveillance video. Hostler told investigators he feared for his life. Prosecutors, by filing the homicide charge, say the shooting supports a criminal case that should proceed in court.
The charge followed a fast-moving investigation by Allegheny County police. Officers were called to the towing business on School Street after gunfire was reported around 5:10 p.m. Ashbaugh had been shot several times and later died. Hostler, who worked for the same business, was identified as the shooter in police accounts. Court records show he was arraigned and held at the Allegheny County Jail without bail. The first public court test was set as a preliminary hearing on June 3. At that hearing, prosecutors would not need to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. They would need to show enough evidence for the case to advance.
Hostler’s statement to police is central because it gives the defense side of the confrontation before formal defense filings are heard. He told investigators that Ashbaugh was his manager and that the two argued after Ashbaugh sent him on another tow call near the close of his shift. Hostler said Ashbaugh punched him, pushed him and tried to hit him again. He said he did not know whether Ashbaugh had a weapon and said he was “in fear for his life.” Police have not publicly said that Ashbaugh had a weapon. That gap between Hostler’s stated fear and the known evidence is likely to matter as the case moves forward.
The prosecution account begins earlier, with an order to take another call and a comment Hostler allegedly made to a co-worker. Police said Ashbaugh heard the remark because he was on the phone with that employee at the time. The argument then continued outside. Witness Amanda Mattern said she heard yelling, then a pause, then more arguing before gunfire. “I heard ‘pop pop pop pop’ like five times,” Mattern said. Other local reports, citing police, described Ashbaugh being shot about 10 times. The exact number of rounds, their direction and the timing between any physical contact and the shots could become important if self-defense is raised in court.
Criminal homicide in Pennsylvania is a broad charge that can cover several levels of unlawful killing, with the final grading shaped by evidence and later court decisions. Police announced the homicide charge in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, but the public filings described so far do not settle every legal question. They do not show a trial date, a plea or a final ruling on whether the shooting was justified. They also do not explain whether prosecutors will pursue a specific theory beyond the initial homicide filing. The court process is expected to define those issues through hearings, motions and, if the case is not resolved earlier, trial proceedings.
The setting also matters to the evidence. The shooting happened outside a working towing business in a neighborhood where nearby residents could hear and see parts of the dispute. Police said surveillance video was part of the investigation, though the video has not been released publicly in full. Witnesses placed the argument outside and described Ashbaugh calling for help after the shots. Emergency responders took him for treatment, but he did not survive. Hostler’s account of being hit may be compared with video, medical records, witness views and the position of the men when the shots were fired.
Local reports identified Ashbaugh as a manager and tow truck worker at the business. A fundraiser for his family was established after his death, a sign that the case has moved beyond police paperwork into a sudden loss for relatives and co-workers. The business has not provided a detailed public statement about the men, the call that sparked the argument or whether there had been prior workplace problems. Police have not announced a broader motive beyond the dispute over the tow assignment. They also have not said whether company records show who took the call, where the call was located or why Hostler was assigned.
For now, the strongest public facts are narrow and severe: a late-shift order, an argument, gunfire and a death. The unresolved questions are the ones the court must sort out. Did the physical fight happen as Hostler described it? Did he face a threat that legally justified deadly force? What does the video show before the first shot? Did any witness see the full confrontation from start to finish? The preliminary hearing was the first place those questions could begin to move from police narrative to courtroom evidence.
Hostler remained jailed without bail while the homicide case awaited its next public step. Ashbaugh’s death remained under review by investigators, with the court process expected to determine how the shooting will be judged under Pennsylvania law.
Author note: Last updated June 23, 2026.