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Miah pleads not guilty to cashing checks scam charges
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Posted on Apr 10 2012
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
Reporter
Mohammad Jahangir Miah, the man tagged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as the mastermind in a scheme of cashing fraudulent CNMI tax refund checks at grocery stores, has pleaded not guilty in federal court.
At Friday’s preliminary hearing, U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona ordered Miah to be held in custody to answer the charges. She set the jury trial for May 22, 2012, and remanded Miah into the custody of the U.S. Marshal.
Court-appointed counsel Colin Thompson argued on behalf of Miah. Assistant U.S. attorney Stephen Leon Guerrero appeared for the U.S. government.
FBI agents arrested Miah on March 19. At the time he was on home confinement in connection with his conviction for his involvement in a driver’s license scam at the Department of Public Safety’s Bureau of Motor Vehicle. He is awaiting sentencing.
According to court papers, the FBI was still conducting follow-up operation on March 19, but Miah frisked the FBI’s “confidential source” and found recording wires hidden underneath the “CS” shirt. This prompted the FBI agents to proceed to Miah’s house and arrest him on charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
FBI special agent Haejun Park stated in an affidavit that their investigation began after the “CS” voluntarily came forward to report that he/she had been cashing fraudulent CNMI tax refund checks at Miah’s instruction.
