BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — A suspect is dead following an officer-involved shooting that occurred after a vehicle pursuit and crash in Kern County on April 10.
Kern County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a reported shooting on the 500 block of South Pepper Drive at about 5:30 p.m. When deputies arrived, the suspect fled the scene. Deputies pursued the suspect for several minutes before terminating the chase due to unsafe driving conditions.
At approximately 6 p.m., the suspect's vehicle crashed on eastbound Highway 58, east of Weedpatch Highway. Around the same time, a gunshot victim arrived at a local hospital via private transport. Investigators determined this victim was connected to the initial shooting on South Pepper Drive.
Deputies arrived at the crash scene and attempted to contact the suspect, which led to an officer-involved shooting. The suspect died at the scene. The Kern County Coroner will release the suspect's identity at a later date.
No deputies were injured during the incident.
Anthony Holguin lives at an RV park close to where the standoff happened. He knew something was going on when helicopters started flying over his RV trailer.
"It’s crazy. I've never seen that many cops before my life. It was it was actually kinda of scary. I was like, 'Woah, all the helicopters that were around,'" Holguin said.
Holguin said many of his neighbors were outside trying to catch a glimpse of the scene.
"And then we just looked over the wall, I was like, 'Oh, my God, I told you something happened, and the freeway was stopped,'" Holguin said. "Everybody was looking over the wall. We were trying to look over the wall. But if you stand over here, you can see all they're the cops and all the lights. That's what was crazy all the lights going on."
Kern County Sheriff's Office homicide detectives took over the investigation. The department investigates any use of deadly force by its members and submits the findings to the Kern County District Attorney's Office for criminal review.
Authorities urge anyone with information regarding this investigation to call the Kern County Sheriff’s Office at 661-861-3110 or Kern Secret Witness at 661-322-4040.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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