ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis on Monday admitted involvement in a fatal 2019 attempted carjacking that was caught on tape, and could now face between 23 and 25 years in federal prison.
On June 3, 2019 at 6:03 a.m., Jalen Exavier Simms and another man saw Jabari Clark sleeping in the driver’s seat of his 2012 Dodge Ram truck in front of his home in the 3000 block of Rauschenbach Avenue in St. Louis. Simms admitted in his guilty plea Monday that he approached Clark on the driver’s side while the other man approached the passenger side of the vehicle. Both pointed handguns at Clark.
Simms began trying to remove Clark from the truck. After a struggle lasting about 30 seconds, Simms’ companion fired several shots, hitting Clark multiple times. Both men then fled.
Clark staggered out of his truck and collapsed on his front lawn, where he died, despite efforts by family members to administer aid.
Investigators obtained surveillance video of the shooting from a nearby home. Simms also dropped a phone charging cord that had his DNA on it.
Investigators are still seeking the identity of the shooter. Anyone with information is asked to call St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Division at 314-444-5371 or report information anonymously via St. Louis Regional Crimestoppers at 866-371-TIPS.
Simms, 27, pleaded guilty Monday, the day his trial was supposed to start, in front of U.S. District Court Judge Henry E. Autrey to one count of attempted carjacking resulting in death.
As part of the plea, both sides have agreed to request a prison sentence of between 23 and 25 years. Simms is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 2.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.