A Tulsan admitted he robbed a bank and fled the scene in a rideshare.
Markell Demond Stanley, 29, was sentenced in Tulsa’s federal district court to 10 years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm while committing a bank robbery.
After a “hold-up” alarm was triggered at a bank in Tulsa in April 2024, police officers spoke with several witnesses who provided a description of the armed suspect later identified as Stanley.
Nearby surveillance captured Stanley casing the area before the robbery and fleeing the area in the back of a vehicle. FLOCK cameras helped Tulsa police track down the owner of the vehicle, who was a rideshare driver. The owner said Stanley approached on foot and paid a cash tip for a ride to an apartment.
After Stanley was arrested, he admitted robbing the bank. He told investigators that he had financial issues and was sorry for robbing the bank. He also stated that he would apologize to the bank employee if given the opportunity.
During a search of Stanley’s home, officers found the firearm and clothing worn during the robbery.
In his plea agreement, Stanley admitted knowing he was a felon and that he was not authorized by law to possess a firearm and ammunition.
A sentencing memorandum relates that Markell had a lifetime of abusive “stepfathers” and eventually watched his mother prostitute herself for their landlord.
One of these abusive livein boyfriends once pointed a shotgun at Markell for leaving a door open. Another time the man threatened to kill Markell’s mother in front of the children, but changed his mind mid-assault and pointed the gun at Markell’s head and pulled the trigger; fortunately there was no round in the chamber.
When Stanley was 14, he was physically assaulted by his mother and her newest boyfriend; his mother held him down while her lover stomped and beat him until police arrived and took the boy to live with his maternal grandmother.