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ABTC eyes several unmarked vehicles, firearms for officers
The Alcoholic Beverage and Tobacco Control Division wants to procure vehicles and firearms for their officers.
According to ABTC director David R. Maratita, Commonwealth law gives ABTC with the authority to conduct undercover operations but does not have the necessary tools for these operations.
“It just defeats the purpose of initiating that undercover operation if we do not have any unmarked vehicles,” Maratita told Saipan Tribune. “That makes it necessary for us to have the enforcement tool that would allow us to proceed with our investigation efforts.”
According to Rep. John Paul Sablan (R-Saipan), the Department of Public Safety as well as the Division of Customs are the only government agencies that are allowed to use unmarked vehicles for their operations.
“Everything is in place in terms of investigative needs except [the unmarked vehicles] that will give us the necessary enforcement that needs to be done,” said Maratita.
ABTC currently has one unmarked vehicle on “standby.”
“We are also working at acquiring our firearms that would be provided to our law enforcement officers when they go out and do their duties,” he added. “A year or two years down in the future, we are looking at acquiring two or three more unmarked vehicles.”
The House of Representatives Committee on Judicial and Governmental Operations unanimously adopted Rep. Joseph “Lee Pan” Guerrero’s (R-Saipan) House Bill 20-132 last week. The bill seeks to allow the ABTC to own unmarked vehicles for their operations.
H.B. 20-132 now proceeds to the floor for deliberation and House action.
