So this was going on all night in Bakersfield.
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The incident began Tuesday afternoon when police responded to reports of a bomb threat at the Downtown Bakersfield Chase Bank. Authorities determined that an adult male had barricaded himself inside the multi-story building — which also houses other offices — along with several community members.
Negotiators worked through the evening and overnight, successfully securing the release of at least two hostages. Law enforcement maintained a heavy presence in the area, with streets closed, nearby buildings including city hall evacuated, and, eventually, support from the FBI.
And this morning around 4:20 local time, it came to an end.
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Here's Bakersfield Police:
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On Wednesday, June 3, at approximately 4:20 a.m., the hostage situation concluded following an officer-involved shooting involving Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel. Bakersfield Police Department personnel were not involved in the use of force.
Fortunately, no injuries were reported among the hostages during the standoff.
According to the New York Post:
The bank robber who strapped a bomb to himself and held 10 hostages for up to 15 hours inside a Bakersfield, Calif., bank before authorities shot him dead has been identified as a US Army veteran and sex offender.
Police named the suspect as 41-year-old Anthony Scott Searles-Harris, who was dishonorably discharged for going AWOL on duty.
He is also a registered sex offender who was charged with sex acts with a child under 14 in 2014, police said.
Here he is via California DOJ:
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Big oof right there!
Welp, now Bakersfield can go back to being Bakersfield (which means something random like this will probably happen again very shortly).
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