Alleged rapist faces new charge

Lonnie Keith, the Chico physician assistant who was arrested last January for allegedly kidnapping, drugging and raping two college-age women, now faces a third charge.

According to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey, a continuing investigation into the sexual assaults in the campus neighborhoods has led to another alleged victim, who was raped in the spring of 2012. (The previous charges stem from assaults that took place in September and October of 2012.)

Ramsey is seeking to add the latest charge to the others Keith faces. The 41-year-old, who is in custody at Butte County Jail, is scheduled for a jury trial beginning on Oct. 7.