A Joshua Tree mother was arrested Wednesday after she left her young child alone at a gas station for hours Tuesday evening. According to a Sheriff’s report, a 4-year-old girl was with at least three other adults and several other young children at a gas station in the 61700 block of 29 Palms Highway about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. When the adults left the business in a black 2000 Dodge Ram 4-door pick-up truck, the 4-year-old girl was left behind in the restroom. Employees discovered her about 7:30 p.m. and called the Sheriff’s Department. The girl only knew her parent’s first names. The girl was turned over to Child Protective Services. About 10:30 p.m., Nichole Pederson, 27, called the gas station inquiring about her daughter, five hours after she was at the gas station. The deputy learned that the girl’s father, Robbie Pederson, 36, had also been at the gas station when the girl was left behind. Nichole Pederson was arrested just after midnight Wednesday for investigation of felony child endangerment. She was booked at the Morongo Basin Jail with her bail set at $100,000. An arrest warrant for Robbie Pederson will be sought through the District Attorney’s office for the same charge. The couple’s five children were taken into protective custody by Child Protective Services.
