Najee Neal, Carjacking, Missouri 2024

A St. Louis man has been sentenced to 156 months in federal prison for his role in a carjacking that took place in Kirkwood, Missouri, in 2020.

Najee Neal, 30, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk on [today’s date] for carjacking, brandishing a firearm in furtherance of that crime, and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents, on February 27, 2020, Neal approached the driver of a car parked in a Kirkwood driveway and ordered the driver out of the car at gunpoint. He then forcibly took the driver’s wallet and key fob and drove away in the victim’s car.

A high-speed chase ensued, with Neal reaching speeds of over 100 miles per hour on Interstate 44 before eventually becoming disabled and fleeing on foot. Officers from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department spotted Neal and pursued him, eventually arresting him after a short foot chase.

During the arrest, officers found a Glock 19 pistol on the porch of a nearby home, which the victim identified as the gun Neal had pointed at him during the carjacking. A search of the area also turned up a magazine loaded with 31 rounds of ammunition fitting the pistol.

This is not Neal’s first run-in with the law. On September 28, 2019, officers with the St. Louis County Police Department arrested Neal after observing what appeared to be a hand-to-hand drug sale between Neal and another individual. A loaded pistol was recovered from Neal’s car at the time of the arrest.

Prior to that, Neal had been convicted of at least one felony crime, making him a felon in possession of a firearm.

Neal pleaded guilty to the charges in July and was sentenced to 156 months in federal prison on [today’s date].

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