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7 of 14 ‘stowaway’ workers change plea
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Posted on Feb 14 2006
Seven of the 14 reported “stowaway” Chinese workers who were arrested last December on charges that they tried to illegally enter Guam appeared in federal court yesterday for a change of plea hearing.
The seven and their respective counsels signed a plea agreement with the U.S. government.
As of press time, the hearing was still ongoing before U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Alex R. Munson.
Under the agreement, the defendants are expected to enter a guilty plea.
Early this month, Superior Court Associate Judge David A. Wiseman dismissed the deportation cases filed against 13 of the 14 “stowaways.”
Court records show that on Dec. 6, 2005, a boat carrying 14 Chinese workers departed from Saipan. Coast Guard intercepted the vessel approximately 11 miles off the coast of Rota.
After intercepting the boat, the Coast Guard escorted the vessel back to Saipan. One of the passengers told investigators that they had gone on the trip to go fishing.
Except for one, all the passengers were not carrying at that time either their CNMI entry permits or their passports. This prompted the CNMI government to file deportation cases against the 13 passengers. The U.S. government then indicted the 14 for human smuggling.
