Missouri woman tracks down stolen Hyundai, kills 2 in shootout at gas station

ST. LOUIS — A Missouri woman whose car was allegedly stolen is accused of tracking down the suspected thief on Wednesday, killing two men and wounding another, authorities said.

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Demesha Coleman, 35, of Spanish Lake, was arrested Wednesday and charged with two counts of first-degree murder, three counts of armed criminal action and one count of first-degree assault, according to St. Louis County online court records.

She was charged on Thursday in the deaths of Darius Jackson, 19, and Joseph Farrar, 49, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The two men were fatally shot outside a Speedie Gas station in St. Louis, according to the newspaper.

The two men were pronounced dead at the scene, KSDK-TV reported. Another male victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition with a gunshot wound to his head, according to the television station.

It was not immediately clear which of the three men was suspected of stealing Coleman’s vehicle, according to the Post-Dispatch.

Police said that after Coleman’s Hyundai Tucson SUV was stolen, she tracked the vehicle to the gas station, KSDK reported.

At about 10:30 p.m. CST, Coleman was captured on surveillance footage walking up to the vehicle at the gas station’s parking lot, the Post-Dispatch reported. She was with a man who police have not identified, but authorities said they were both carrying guns.

The video shows Coleman opening the front passenger door of the SUV with her gun raised, while the man opened the driver’s side door, KMOV-TV reported. Police said that Coleman opened fire and a shootout occurred, according to the television station.

Coleman allegedly told detectives during a recorded interview that she went to the gas station to take her stolen car back, then identified herself on the footage, according to court documents.

Farrar was shot in the torso and police found him next to a gasoline pump, the Post-Dispatch reported. Jackson was on the ground next to the SUV and had also been shot in the torso, according to police.

The third man was found on the far end of the gas station parking lot.

Coleman is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, according to online court documents.

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