Man charged in Gottschalks robbery

A Carson City man, arrested on an unrelated charge hours after a holdup last week at Gottschalks, was booked Tuesday in connection with that robbery.

David William Strouse, 42, is being held on suspicion of felony robbery and assault with a weapon.

According to police reports, Strouse was stopped at 10:38 p.m. Feb. 5 at Long and Wendy streets after a Carson City sheriff's deputy allegedly noticed a passing car lacked a front license plate. As he turned to stop the car, the deputy realized the 1984 four-door Hyundai matched the description of the suspect's vehicle in the holdup of Gottschalks' hair salon at 6:20 that evening.

A man fitting Strouse's description entered the south doors of Gottschalks and snatched a bank deposit bag from a counter, police said.

When the clerk followed, the bandit turned to him and said, "Back off," motioning with the bag as though he had a weapon.

While Strouse was detained during the traffic stop, the salon clerk was driven past the vehicle and positively identified it. But the clerk was unable to identify Strouse as the robber, police reported.

Strouse was booked on suspicion of misdemeanor failure to register as a felon and probation violation.

The clerk identified him in a photographic lineup two days later, saying the night of the robbery that he was unable to identify Strouse because of the lighting.

Police said they found a grocery bag in Strouse's car that contained a hammer. Information from a source revealed Strouse was involved in several similar robberies in Reno 10 years ago, in which he put an item into a plastic bag and acted as though it were a weapon.

Bail is set at $60,000.