Nephew throws Coke can at car as it’s stolen, then driver nearly kills him, feds say

A nephew was driving his uncle’s car when he stopped at a Missouri gas station and bought two Cokes from the convenience store, authorities said.

While he was inside the store on May 20, 2020, someone started driving away in his uncle’s black Saturn Aura, according to court records.

The nephew ran outside and threw a Coke can at the Aura, authorities said, then was nearly killed.

The driver in the Aura had struck him with the car, leaving the nephew with “permanent and/or life-threatening injuries (including brain injuries),” prosecutors said.

Now more than three years later, two men have pleaded guilty in the case, according to a Nov. 13 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Brandon Vandoren, 29, of St. Louis County, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Nov. 8, to one count of carjacking, authorities said. A 31-year-old St. Louis man pleaded guilty Nov. 13 to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Their defense attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment from McClatchy News on Nov. 14.

Authorities said Vandoren was a passenger in a stolen Dodge Dart when he and the other man headed to a MotoMart gas station and convenience store in Jefferson County.

Their intention was to steal another vehicle, authorities said.

The St. Louis man dropped Vandoren off, then Vandoren got into the Aura and started driving away, authorities said.

After the carjacking, the two men drove away and led officers “on a high-speed chase,” according to court records.

The St. Louis man crashed the stolen Dart and ran away, prosecutors said, then Vandoren tried to pick him up in the Aura.

But Vandoren left him when officers caught up, authorities said. The St. Louis man was arrested.

The next day, officers found the Aura at a St. Louis County hotel, authorities said. The Aura had a damaged headlight, a damaged windshield and skin from the carjacking victim, according to court records.

Officers learned Vandoren’s dad had rented a hotel room, and they knocked on the door, authorities said. Vandoren answered and was arrested, according to court records.

Vandoren faces up to 25 years in prison, authorities said, and the other man faces up to 10 years in prison. They are scheduled for sentencing in February.