BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — The Kern County Coroner’s Office has identified the man shot and killed in the deputy-involved shooting in Lake Isabella as 39-year-old Fernando Padilla of Bodfish.
SEE ALSO: One dead after deputy-involved shooting in Lake Isabella
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office said on Sunday, January 11, 2026, at around 1:40 a.m., deputies assigned to the Kern Valley Substation responded to the area of Kilbreth Avenue and Lake Isabella Boulevard for reports of a person firing a handgun.
KCSO said deputies made contact with the suspect, who left to the area of Highway 178, where a deputy-involved shooting happened.
Deputies rendered medical aid and medical personnel arrived. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.
The coroner’s office identified him as 39-year-old Fernando Padilla.
The coroner’s report said Fernando died on Highway 178, east of the Kernville Road off-ramp.
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office said detectives investigate any use of deadly force by any member of the department. Investigations are submitted to the Kern County District Attorney’s Office for criminal review.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to call the Kern County Sheriff’s Office at (661)861-3110 or Kern Secret Witness at (661)322-4040.