Indio man charged in carjacking and assault in Cabazon

An Indio man was accused of trying to carjack two victims in Cabazon Wednesday. In one incident, investigators said he took off with a victim's vehicle, which was later located.

Investigators with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department said the initial incident was reported Wednesday around 5:00 a.m.

Authorities said the suspect, Kegan Matthew Nelson, 28, of Indio, allegedly assaulted the first victim while unsuccessfully trying to take the victim's vehicle. This was in the area of Seminole Drive near Malki Road.

Investigators believed Nelson then went to the area of Seminole Drive near Morongo Trail, where they said he assaulted a second victim and was able to take that person's vehicle.

Investigators said the victim's vehicle was located about an hour later in Loma Linda, California.

Deputies arrested Nelson and said he was on probation for a previous attempted carjacking that happened back in 2021.

On Friday, Nelson was charged with carjacking, attempted carjacking, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and sentence-enhancing allegations of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony.

He is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail at the Smith Correctional Facility, was slated to make his initial court appearance Friday afternoon at the Banning Justice Center.

Community members with information that could help investigators with this case were asked to call Deputy Lloyd or Deputy Herweck at the Cabazon Sheriff’s Station at (951) 922-7100.

Stay with News Channel 3 for updates on this story.