Two presumed buyers of a car advertised for sale on Craigslist were charged Monday in connection with the shooting death of a St. Paul man last week.
Dao Xiong, 19, told Sheriff's Office investigators that he killed Youa Lor, 33, of St. Paul, because he wanted to strip parts from a 2003 Nissan 350Z automobile Lor was trying to sell on Craigslist, according to the criminal complaint.
Passersby found Lor shot in the stomach and gasping for air Thursday in a ditch on a country road in Lake Elmo, the complaint said. Lor was taken to Regions Hospital in St. Paul, where he was dead on arrival.
Xiong was charged with two counts of second-degree murder when he appeared before Judge Elizabeth Martin in Washington County District Court. She set bail at $1.5 million.
Keng Koua Thao, 19, of Maplewood, also was charged Monday. He is accused of aiding and abetting second-degree murder for helping plan the robbery and stripping parts from Lor's car, according to the complaint.
The complaint against Xiong alleges that Lor had taken him for a ride in his car on the belief that Xiong wanted to buy it. Xiong told police, however, that he had no intention of buying but instead wanted to steal the car for the purpose of stripping a turbocharger from the engine, the complaint said.
Xiong told investigators he shot Lor with a .40-caliber handgun when they stopped on 55th Street N. and exited the car, the complaint said. Lor was shot once in the stomach, it said.
Witnesses who saw Lor's car in the vicinity of where Lor was found said it was distinctive for having "lots of graphics" on the hood. A deputy who later found the abandoned car on a trail at Sunfish Lake Park said the hood, bearing images of Lor's four children, had been removed.
