A man involved in a carjacking incident in St. Louis has been sentenced to eight years in prison. U.S. District Judge Ronnie L. White delivered the sentence on Wednesday to Brandon Best, of Cahokia, Illinois.
On the evening of July 11, 2022, Best, along with at least two accomplices, traveled from East St. Louis to the Soulard neighborhood in St. Louis with the intent to steal cars. Just after midnight, a woman was walking to her 2011 Kia Optima when a sedan approached. Best exited the sedan and ran towards the victim and her vehicle. Although the victim managed to enter her car and close the door, Best reopened the door and either pulled her out or ordered her out as another carjacker took the driver’s seat. This second carjacker was armed with a pistol, a fact Best acknowledged knowing.
The victim reported to investigators that the armed carjacker pointed the gun at her, ordered her not to move, and demanded her keys.
Approximately 15 minutes later, at a gas station about one mile from the scene, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department officers spotted the stolen Kia. Best and the other carjacker fled the scene in the car, heading towards Illinois. The pursuit ended back in St. Louis, where Best exited the car near Interstate 44 and Jefferson Avenue and attempted to evade officers by running across the interstate. He was eventually apprehended behind a home, with his 9mm pistol found nearby.
In April, Best, 21, pleaded guilty to charges of carjacking and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Dunkel prosecuted the case.
