Families of two slain Stockton bank robbers mourn, apologize

The families of two armed bank robbers involved in a deadly chase in Stockton apologized for the incident and offered condolences to the family of a bank customer taken hostage and killed.

The father of Alex Martinez, 27, and mother of Gilbert Renteria Jr., 30, told Bay Area news stations over the weekend that their children’s involvement in last week’s bank robbery stunned them, and they expressed regret for the death of Misty Jean Singh, 42.

“I want to express my deepest condolences on behalf of my family. … I want it to be known that my heart goes out to them,” Edgar Martinez told CBS Sacramento. “If I could, I would take their pain and carry it for them.”

He added that police actions that day were “appropriate.”

Police said the two men and 19-year-old Jaime Ramos, all members or associates of the violent Norteños street gang, robbed a Bank of the West branch on Wednesday and took three hostages, including Singh.

The men fled in a hostage’s Ford Explorer and led police on a chase across three cities while firing hundreds of rounds at pursuing officers. Two of the hostages were wounded and ejected from the vehicle mid-pursuit, but Singh was used as a human shield and killed, according to police.

Renteria’s mother, Debra, told CBS that her family is grieving.

“We’re not just grieving for our son, we’re grieving for the woman who passed, the kids who had to run away and anyone who was traumatized,” she told the station.

At a news conference Friday, Singh’s sister, Dawn Holt, asked for the public to respect the grief of the robbers’ families.

“They lost someone they love, too,” she said.

Singh’s family has called for police to turn over all dispatch audio recordings, logs, videos and police protocols in connection with the robbery. They have not hired an attorney or suggested that they will file a lawsuit in connection with her death.

Ramos is scheduled to be arraigned Monday afternoon.

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