Anthony Scott Searles-Harris: 5 things on suspect killed after Bakersfield hostage situation, bomb threat at Chase bank
Anthony Scott Searles-Harris has been named as the suspected bank robber who strapped a bomb to himself and held people hostage in Bakersfield. The incident at a Chase bank in downtown Bakersfield, California, yesterday, saw 10 people held hostage for up to 15 hours before authorities shot the suspect dead.
As per witnesses, Searles-Harris said “It’s a bad day to be at the bank,” when he began the robbery, KGET reported. Sid Patel, special agent in charge in the FBI’s Sacramento office confirmed that Searles-Harris had been shot and killed around 4:20am. Here’s all you need to know about Anthony Scott Searles-Harris.
Also Read | Jamshid Ghomi: 5 things on Newport Coast CEO arrested for selling US tech to help Iran’s nuclear program
Anthony Scott Searles-Harris: 5 things to know
- Searles-Harris, 41, was an Army veteran who was dishonorably discharged, as per reports.
- Searles-Harris also was a registered sex offender. As per police chief Jeremy Blakemore, Searles-Harris had ‘concerns related to how his previous case had been handled and what the aftermath of that was, the sentencing and those kinds of things’.
- Searles-Harris was in the army for a year, but was let go because he went AWOL.
- As per California Department of Justice records, Searles-Harris was on the sex offender registry in the state, due to being convicted in 2014 for sexual crimes linked to a child under the age of 14, reports noted. He was then released from jail in 2018. According to reports, another man had allegedly paid Searles-Harris in 2014, to have two underage girls perform oral sex on him. The suspect in the bank robbery also allegedly hosted underage girls at parties in his Oildale home, where he gave them drugs and alcohol, and then coerced them into sex acts.
- A motive for the standoff was not given but the Bakersfield police chief indicated that Searles-Harris wanted materials from his previous case. According to Kern County court records Searles-Harris had filed a petition to prevent domestic violence. He was also involved in divorce proceedings that noted a young child, and a fight for guardianship, where he was noted as an objector.
After Searles-Harris was no longer a threat, cops also worked to ensure there was no danger from the alleged explosive devices present at the site. They were able to conclude they were of no concern. “We’re still doing further testing on it, but we were able to conclude at this point in time that they were not a concern to us,” an FBI official told New York Post. Bakersfield Mayor Karen Goh said in a statement “The best way the public can help at this time is by avoiding the area and allowing law enforcement officers, negotiators, and other trained professionals the space and opportunity to safely carry out their duties.”
(With AP inputs)