‘Rydlyme purchases an abuse of public funds’

An inventory specialist at the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. yesterday testified that he wrote an anonymous letter to the Office of Public Auditor last year because he felt that the purchase of thousands of gallons of a chemical called Rydlyme was an abuse of public funds.

During direct examination by assistant U.S. attorney Eric O’Malley, Joseph Sablan Crisostomo said he had wondered why CUC was purchasing more Rydlyme when there were ample stocks of the chemical at the power plant.

Crisostomo said there was an austerity regime that year and the hours of employees were cut, yet CUC purchased more Rydlyme despite having an excess of the product.

On O’Malley’s question whether he formed an opinion about the purchase, the government witness replied: “My opinion was we still have the product in the power plant and we’re ordering more of the product.”

Crisostomo said he encountered Rydlyme in November 2007 when James Santos came to his office at the CUC warehouse to inform him that a delivery of Rydlyme was made.

James Santos owns ISLA Sales Micronesia, which supplied thousands of gallons of Rydlyme to CUC. His wife, Joaquina V. Santos, owns Blue Pacific that received $120,000 from CUC in September 2007 for the purchase of 3,000 gallons of Rydlyme. The two are co-defendants of Lt. Gov. Timothy Villagomez in the case.

Crisostomo identified three pictures taken of the power plant warehouse as the same containers of Rydlyme he saw in the power plant area.

He said it was Flor Valencia, working at the warehouse, who handed him some papers that James Santos brought for the delivery of Rydlyme.

Victorino Torres, counsel for James Santos, showed Crisostomo a letter of James Santos dated Feb. 6, 1998, addressed to Villagomez about ISLA Sales’ quotation for 375 gallons of Rydlyme at $35 per gallon for a total of $13,125.

Crisostomo agreed with Torres that at no time did James Santos request for payment before delivery of Rydlyme.

He agreed that Flor Valencia took the documents—an invoice from Blue Pacific to CUC. Crisostomo said James Santos came to the warehouse and provided the documents to Valencia, who in turn gave the documents to him.

Crisostomo said that among the documents was Blue Pacific’s invoice from Rydlyme manufacturer, Apex Engineering, for a cost of over $30,000.

The witness said James Santos provided a second invoice from Blue Pacific regarding how much he is charging CUC.

Torres also presented a Customs declaration that assessed Blue Pacific $1,352 in total taxes for the shipment of Rydlyme.

Crisostomo agreed with Torres that when James Santos provided the invoices it was a normal practice.

“Did CUC accept Rydlyme upon delivery? Yes or no?” asked Torres. Crisostomo answered, “Yes.”

The witness agreed with Ramon Quichocho, counsel for Joaquina Santos, that he (Crisostomo) did not know in 2007 that Blue Pacific and CUC had a contract for the purchase of Rydlyme.

“Now you know that a contract exists between CUC and Blue Pacific?” Quichocho asked. “Yes,” Crisostomo said.

Crisostomo told the prosecution that to his knowledge there was no request for Rydlyme for Rota and Tinian.

When asked about his reaction to the difference in the supplier’s price and Pacific Blue’s invoice, Crisostomo said, “It shocked me.”

Crisostomo said the Apex invoice to Blue Pacific was $30,766, and Blue Pacific’s invoice to CUC that he saw in November 2007 was for $125,000. He said this is a 300 to 400 percent markup on the Rydlyme’s price.

When O’Malley asked him for his motive in writing the letter to OPA, the witness said there were austerity measures at that time and the prices of gas had gone up, yet CUC was turning around by buying excessive amounts of Rydlyme.

“It violated the Ethics [Act],” he added.

During questioning by David Lujan, counsel for Villagomez, Crisostomo said he was concerned when he saw the difference in prices. He admitted, though, that he never saw a price list of the product that Procurement had received.

“You were at the warehouse and had nothing to do with procurement, at least with this transaction?” Lujan asked. Crisistomo said, “Yes.”

He conceded that he has no personal knowledge that Villagomez disqualified himself from the contract.

After Crisostomo, CUC procurement specialist Joseph Fejeran took the witness stand.

When Saipan Tribune left the courtroom, Fejeran was still testifying.