Attorneys Differ on Whether Xiong Intended to Kill Man he met on Craigslist

Both prosecuting and defense attorneys in the case of Dao Xiong, 20, agreed that the Oakdale man intended to steal a car from another man he met through Craigslist last September. But that’s where the similarities in their accounts of Xiong’s intent stopped in opening statements Friday in Washington County District Court, the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press reported.

Xiong is accused of shooting Youa Ty Lor in the abdomen in a remote area of Lake Elmo while he was out test driving Lor’s 2003 Nissan 350Z, which Xiong wanted for parts.

Prosecuting attorney John Fristik depicted the murder as a premeditated act—stating that Xiong texted a friend two days prior to the incident asking him whether he wanted “to kill a guy with me?” and purchased a disposable cell phone to use to call Lor, according to the Pioneer Press report.

Defense attorney, F. Clayton Tyler, on the other hand, described Xiong—a former National Guardsman—as a “young kid who never committed a crime in his life,” the report says. He said Xiong’s nervousness over committing the crime caused the gun to go off, according to the report.

Xiong was using the gun to try to get Lor away from the car, Tyler argued, according to the Star Tribune report. Further, Tyler said, Xiong wanted to help the man he had just shot, but he got scared and drove off, the report says.

The trial continues Monday.