Man accused of swallowing ‘ice’ gets 81-day sentence

A man accused of selling items stolen from a house in Kagman III has pleaded guilty in Superior Court and was slapped with an 81-day prison sentence.

John A. Castro, 42, pleaded guilty last week to receiving stolen property as part of a plea deal.

Associate Judge David A. Wiseman sentenced Castro to five years in prison, all suspended except for 81 days, with credit for 81 days of time served. This means Castro immediately goes free.

Wiseman placed Castro on supervised probation for five years and required him to pay a $100 fine plus probation fee.

Chief Public Defender Douglas Hartig served as counsel for Castro. Assistant attorney general James McAllister represented the government.

According to police, Castro received three stolen purses from Vincent Terlaje on Feb. 25, 2014, on Saipan.

Police said that when a detective interviewed Castro at his house, he swallowed a zip-loc bag that contained a substance believed to be methamphetamine or “ice” that a detective had placed on a table.

Police detective Catherine B. Pangelinan stated in her report that when she asked why he swallowed the “ice” evidence, Castro replied that it’s the only way not to get charged for “ice.”

The amount of “ice” involved was not indicated in the report.

Pangelinan said Castro, however, did not eat a green leafy substance that tested positive for marijuana that was also seized from him.

Police arrested Castro in Kagman III in March for receiving stolen property and illegal possession of a controlled substance.

Pangelinan stated in her report that a police officer was dispatched last Feb. 24 to a burglary and theft incident at a  house in Kagman III, where the suspect or suspects stole gold jewelry, a wristwatch and three purses, worth a total of $850.

Pangelinan said the following day, Feb. 25, the victim called police to report that her close friend managed to buy her two stolen purses from the suspect, later identified as Castro, who is a regular customer at Kagman Poker.

Castro allegedly approached the victim’s friend and offered to sell her two purses. The victim’s friend paid Castro $30 for the purses. The friend then told the victim about the purchase and led Pangelinan to the poker booth, where they reviewed the camera’s footage.