St. Paul man charged with carjacking and shooting motorist in Cub Foods parking lot

Authorities have charged a St. Paul man in connection with a shooting that occurred during a carjacking attempt Thursday afternoon in the Cub Foods parking lot on Clarence Street and Maryland Avenue.

Jarquez Jason Yankovec, 27, was charged Friday with one felony count of possessing a firearm when he was prohibited, one felony count of possessing ammunition when he was forbidden and one felony count of firing toward an occupied building or vehicle.

During the Thursday afternoon carjacking attempt on the East Side, a man was shot in the upper left thigh when Yankovec allegedly fired through the driver’s window of the man’s vehicle.

The incident occurred around 2 p.m. A man who had been parked in the grocery store parking lot said two masked men approached his vehicle and tried to open the rear doors. He was frightened and backed out of his parking spot to drive away. The two men chased him and one fired a gun. A bullet struck him as he drove away. He drove himself to St. John’s Hospital in Maplewood, where he was treated for an injury that wasn’t life threatening.

The suspects also tried to carjack another person, who also drove away from the lot.

Ninety minutes later, investigators arrested two men, ages 21 and 27, in connection with the incident.

Authorities said that Yankovec has a prior felony conviction for third-degree assault that makes him ineligible to possess firearms or ammunition. Yankovec also has a prior conviction for felon in possession of a firearm.

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