FBI Ends 12-Hour Bakersfield Hostage Standoff; All Hostages Rescued

BAKERSFIELD, California — A 12-hour hostage situation at a downtown building housing a Chase Bank and Kern County Superintendent of Schools offices concluded early Wednesday morning when FBI agents shot and killed the suspect. All ten hostages were rescued without physical injury, authorities confirmed.

The standoff began Tuesday afternoon after the suspect barricaded himself inside the second-floor offices near City Hall. According to an FBI spokesperson, the suspect took ten people hostage and attached explosive devices to several of the captives as well as to himself. Two hostages were released prior to the resolution of the crisis.

“At approximately 4:30 a.m. this morning, the hostage rescue team neutralized the subject,” an FBI spokesperson stated. “And let me be clear, he had tied up five of the hostages, but there were ten hostages in there, and they were all unharmed. Physically.”

The suspect was identified as 41-year-old Anthony Scott Cearley. Sheriff’s investigators noted that Cearley has a lengthy criminal record and is a registered sex offender. Authorities have not yet determined a motive for the incident.

An investigation into the circumstances surrounding the standoff remains underway. The building has been secured as officials continue their review.