Federal lawsuit against man charged with stealing car in downtown area

ST. LOUIS – A man pleaded not guilty in federal court Wednesday to a car theft in downtown St. Louis earlier this summer.

Prosecutors with the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Bradley McKinney, 34, stole a 2015 Chevy Cruze on July 29. The indictment also alleges that McKinney was in possession of a machine gun the following day.

McKinney and another man are accused of brandishing handguns when they stole the Cruze, as well as stealing purses and a cell phone from the driver and passenger. Immediately after the car was stolen, police claimed that a white GMC Terrain pulled over and then both the Terrain and the Cruze drove to Illinois.

The very next day, the St. Louis Police Department conducted a traffic stop on the premises. McKinney drove the SUV. Police found a Glock handgun that had been illegally modified with a switch or automatic firing device to be fully automatic.

Prosecutors petitioned the court to hold McKinney pending trial.

McKinney was charged with stealing an automobile, possession of a firearm in aid of a violent crime, possession of a firearm as a career armed criminal, and possession of a machine gun.

The charge of auto theft carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison; Possession of a firearm carries a sentence of seven years. Anyone who is a felon and possesses a firearm is punished with imprisonment for at least 15 years. and the machine gun charge carries a 10-year sentence.