Suspect ID’d after allegedly attacking woman at Pony Express Western Outfitters
Cathedral City police arrested a man accused of assaulting a clerk at Pony Express Western Outfitters on Monday, October 17 during a robbery. Officers said the clerk was hospitalized from the assault.
The suspect, 41-year-old Keith Allen Schouten of Desert Hot Springs, was taken into custody at about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. The robbery happened Monday at about 5:20 p.m. The store is located at 68535 East Palm Canyon Drive.
The suspect was caught on surveillance camera and authorities released two photos on Wednesday, hoping the public could help point them in the right direction. Officers said they had reason to believe the man was still in the Cathedral City/ Palm Springs area when they released the surveillance photos.
Authorities caught up with the suspect when a Post Release Accountability and Compliance Team spotted Schouten in the 14000 block of Palm Drive in Desert Hot Springs on Wednesday afternoon. As officer attempted to talk to the man he ran and attempted to disguise himself while hiding in a nearby business, authorities said in a release.
Schouten was arrested and was taken to the Cathedral City Police Department for investigation. He was ultimately booked into the Riverside County Jail in Indio on charged of attempted murder, armed robbery, auto theft, and other related charges, according to the sheriff’s department.
The victim’s friends and family started a Go Fund Me account as she recovers in the intensive care unit. Her friend’s identified her as 71-year-old Janice Christian and said the suspect allegedly attacked her with a hammer, causing serious injuries to her skull, face, hands and spine.
Her family wrote on the Go Fund Me Page: With her [Janice Christian’s] family being one of the first ranch families in the valley, Janice and her three children were all born and raised here. A once rodeo queen, Bob Hope Classic model and barrel racer is now the local pet rescuer; giving her home to more then a dozen animals. Now she is in need of your rescuing!
