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Man sentenced to 5 years for possession of ‘ice’
A man was sentenced to five years in prison last Wednesday in Superior Court for possession of methamphetamine or “ice.”
Mariano Quitugua Falig Jr. was sentenced to five years imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
As a mitigating factor, Falig also relied on his “ice” addiction. However, the court made it clear in the sentencing order that he is not being punished because he is an addict but because he committed a crime of possessing a controlled substance.
In rendering the sentence, Associate Judge Joseph Camacho took note of the restraining order the victim sought against Falig in 2015.
In her application for a restraining order, she stated that Falig’s ice use had increased and that he became more verbally and emotionally abusive. At one point, he even threatened to kill the victim and her unborn child. The baby passed away during birth.
Falig was given credit for time served since his arrest in June 2016 and eligible for parole after serving the first four years of his sentence.
Falig has prior criminal cases in the CNMI and Guam.
On June 8, 2016, Falig was on probation when he was arrested for illegal possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of ammunition. His probation in an assault case is set to expire on July 13, 2018.
On June 14, 2016, Falig was charged by the Attorney General’s Office with two counts of illegal possession of a controlled substance and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition.
The Attorney General’s Office dismissed one count of illegal possession of a controlled substance on June 15, 2016.
On Sept. 6, 2016, the Attorney General’s Office dismissed the charge of illegal possession of ammunition, leaving only one of the three original charges, which is illegal possession of controlled substance, the crime where the recent sentence was based on.
