A 20-year-old Andover man has been sentenced to an 18-year term for fatally shooting a man in a Cub Foods parking lot in Coon Rapids.
Vaughn J. Coklas was sentenced in Anoka County District Court last week after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in connection with the killing of Staveonte El Brown, 19, of Coon Rapids, after the two began a fight in Coklas' car that spilled out into the lot.
With credit for time served since his arrest, Coklas is expected to spend about 11 years in prison and the balance on supervised release.
Witnesses told police that once outside the car, the men separated and Brown began picking up money that had fallen to the ground. While he was bent down retrieving the money, according to a witness, Coklas pulled out a handgun, moved toward Brown and shot him in the chest.
Brown had not threatened Coklas and was not armed, according to the witness.
Paramedics pronounced Brown dead at the scene.
