Bakersfield Chase – A 41-year-old man convicted of sex offenses barricaded himself inside a Chase Bank in downtown Bakersfield, tied up 10 hostages on the second floor, and threatened to blow himself up overnight Tuesday, before the FBI killed him early Wednesday. Officials said
When the first calls came in around 1 p.m. Tuesday about a man with an explosive device walking into a Chase Bank on 17th Street in downtown Bakersfield, the question quickly became less about what he claimed to have—and more about what he would do next.
Police and FBI officials said Anthony Scott Searles-Harris. 41. walked into the bank and claimed that explosives were “attached to his person.” He tied up hostages on the second floor. locked himself and everyone inside. and told law enforcement he had explosives attached to himself and some of the hostages. Authorities later determined the explosives were not real.
The standoff lasted through the night. In the middle of families’ worst fears, law enforcement managed to get two people out—first at 3:59 p.m. and then again at 8:24 p.m.—after negotiations that included the suspect’s requests for food and water. and for materials related to his previous court case that he wanted to see. After that, officials said talks stalled and Searles-Harris refused to release any more hostages.
City and federal officials described the hostages as employees connected to the Kern County superintendent of schools. located on the second floor. Five of those hostages were tied up, while other employees fled as surrounding areas were evacuated. Police said they did not believe the employees were targeted. though the FBI’s Sacramento field office said the suspect may have deliberately selected the bank building to increase the likelihood of a federal response. Searles-Harris told authorities early on that he wanted “the notoriety of having FBI involved. ” according to FBI special agent Sid Patel.
Even as the situation dragged on. the danger took on a more immediate. bodily urgency: officials said one hostage managed to communicate with law enforcement before her phone died. The hostage was diabetic. and police were able to get medication. but authorities said it was a “loss-of-life situation” if they did not act quickly.
Just after 9 p.m. Tuesday, the FBI assumed control of the incident. Around 4:20 a.m. Wednesday, an elite FBI Hostage Rescue Team moved in and fatally shot Searles-Harris.
The man killed in the standoff had a criminal history that has now sharpened public scrutiny of how the case escalated so rapidly. Officials said he was convicted of committing sex acts with underage girls, sentenced to prison, and released in 2018. Online records, cited in the report, say he was most recently living in the 500 block of Oildale Drive in Bakersfield. In 2014. he was added to the state’s sex offender registry for a conviction involving lewd acts on a child under 14 years of age.
In a video uploaded to YouTube in October titled “Labeled a Monster. ” Searles-Harris accused law enforcement of planting evidence in his case. He also said the media helped drive his conviction by publicizing “false allegations.” Police have been examining previous statements he made on social media. according to Jeremy Blakemore. assistant chief of the Bakersfield Police Department. Blakemore said Searles-Harris had concerns tied to how his previous case was handled and what followed, including the sentencing.
Before the hostage situation, federal records also described a separate chapter of his life in the U.S. Army. The FBI said Searles-Harris served briefly before he was dishonorably discharged in 2007 for going AWOL. Years later. he was involved in divorce proceedings that began in 2008 and was later involved in a fight for guardianship over a child.
In the hours after the shooting. Kern County superintendent of schools John Mendiburu said employees were physically unharmed and that the district was “relieved.” In a statement. Mendiburu called what unfolded “a terribly frightening and unsettling experience” and said the composure the employees showed during the 16-hour ordeal was “extraordinary.” He thanked the Bakersfield Police Department. the FBI. and all responding agencies.
JPMorgan Chase said in a statement that its branch is on the ground floor of the building and was empty. The company said the branch would remain closed until further notice, adding that it was focused on supporting employees, including providing access to resources and assistance.
The sequence of decisions—negotiations that produced two releases. the escalation to FBI control. the urgent medication needs tied to one diabetic hostage. and the final operation after 4 a.m.—left a clear impression even in the aftermath: lives on the second floor were balanced moment by moment against time. health. and the suspect’s refusal to back down.
Bakersfield hostage standoff FBI Anthony Scott Searles-Harris Chase Bank Kern County superintendent of schools sex offender explosives threat