Deliberation begins for 5 parole applicants

The CNMI Board of Parole has started deliberating on the applications of five inmates who recently sought early release.

Of the five applicants, three are serving time for first-degree murder, while the other two were imprisoned for sex abuse of a minor in the first degree and theft, respectively.

Parole officer Jason Lizama said that, after hearing the last two parole applicants yesterday, the board took the whole of yesterday to deliberate. They are expected to announce their decision today.

The applicants include Francisco Aguon Pua, Jesse James Camacho, and Eric Rabauliman, who are all serving sentences for first-degree murder.

The other two parolees are Robert Kotep Shineachi and Clifford Jack Palacios.

The most notorious of the bunch is Pua who is serving a 50-year sentence for the murder Mostofa Faruk Parves back in 2002, a Bangladeshi national employed as an attendant at Candi’s Poker.

Pua managed walk free for three years following the heinous crime with police finally arresting him in 2005.

Police record show that Parves was beaten to death during the early hours of May 22, 2002. His body was discovered early that morning by the establishment’s manager. Multiple wounds were found on the victim’s body.

At that time, police confirmed that the motive behind the homicide was robbery, though it was not disclosed if money was taken from the Tanapag poker place.

Police said that the Homicide Task Force initially found it difficult to solve the crime due to some witnesses fearing for their safety or informants leaving the island.

David said that investigators knew Pua was among several others at the crime scene at the time of the incident, after reviewing footage taken from the establishment’s surveillance camera.

According to OAG Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds, the OAG greatly opposes granting parole to Pua.

“This type of crime should be a very strong aggravating factor during the parole decision. We respectfully request that his application be denied. We believe the inmate is not suitable for parole. The inmate has only served 16 years of his sentence as of Jan. 12, 2022, and has over 33 years of his remaining sentence on this heinous crime, the most serious offense we face as a society,” Hinds said.