Each deputy approached in their vehicle towards the man. Officials say the two deputies then got out of their auto to investigate.
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KCSO coroner confirms man shot in Inyokern was suspect, Benjamin Ashley. One deputy was shot in both arms and the other was grazed, authorities said.
The identification was made by the Coroner’s Office, Raymond Pruitt of the Kern County Sheriff’s Office told ABC News.
Authorities had warned residents to stay inside and keep their doors and windows shut during the manhunt.
Gary Welfl, manager of Brady’s Mini Mart, told the Californian the suspect entered his store carrying three duffel bags, wearing a backpack and holding a walking stick.
Ashley was fatally wounded, and may have been hit by his own gunfire as well as that from the deputies, Youngblood said.
The crime spree started on July 28 when the man took three men hostage in a cabin located in Twin Oakes after they confronted him about squatting on their property.
On 1 August, two SWAT team members were shot and injured by a man armed with a shotgun as they searched a trailer in Kelso Valley. Authorities also closed a stretch of the famed Pacific Crest Trail in the southern Sierra Nevada.
Authorities described Ashley as a survivalist who would be able to find food and water to sustain himself.
Ashley had several previous encounters with police.
Along Easy Street, Kern County Sheriff deputies, Bakersfield Police officers, California Highway Patrol officers and federal law enforcement officials could be seen driving to the scene, which is about half a mile from Highway 178.
The 34-year old suspect is believed to have been homeless and had been arrested numerous times across California before the events in Kern County.
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The first version of this story was published at 10:02 a.m.
