A 17-year-old stole a Lexus from a gas station in St. Paul on Christmas afternoon after the car’s owner wouldn’t buy the teen cigarettes, authorities say.

Parker Steven LaFromboise hopped into the man’s car parked outside a SuperAmerica at Lexington Parkway and Front Avenue after the man turned down his request, according to court records.

Rashad Turner, 32, told police he was still holding his vehicle’s fob so he wasn’t sure how the teen was able to start his car.

LaFromboise sped away from the gas station at speeds of more than 70 mph as police tried to pull him over, legal documents say.

He then accelerated through a red light at the intersection of Front and Como avenues and Dale Street and smashed into a pickup truck that had the right of way, authorities say. The pickup driver was taken to a hospital and treated for a broken nose.

LaFromboise got out of the car and ran, according to the juvenile petition filed against him in Ramsey County District Court. He faces one count of theft of a motor vehicle and another for fleeing a police officer.

Turner is formerly a leader with Black Lives Matter St. Paul who ran a write-in campaign for the St. Paul school board and who challenged Rep. Rena Moran in the 2016 DFL primary.

On Wednesday, Turner said while it was unfortunate to have “a vehicle stolen from right in front of my face … the bigger issue is the obvious lack of economic opportunity that a lot of youth in our city continue to face.”

Turner is now director of community engagement at Minnesota Comeback, an education non-profit. He said he appreciates the support he’s received since the theft, including from the St. Paul Police Department.

“But we have to do better as a city in providing economic opportunities for the youth or we will continue to leave our youth feeling hopeless,” Turner said.

The incident took place around 1:30 p.m. Christmas Day. The rear window of the pickup truck was lost, as was the driver’s side rear tire. The truck’s tailgate was found about a block east of the crash site, the petition said. A van also sustained damage as did a retaining wall and a fence at a nearby day care.

After his arrest, LaFromboise told police that he couldn’t remember much of the incident, saying he last remembered getting into a “nice Lexus” after trying to buy cigarettes at a SuperAmerica.

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Mara H. Gottfried contributed to this report.