Jury deliberations begin in Reksid case

Federal jurors began deliberations yesterday in the trial of former Department of Public Lands special assistant to the secretary Franz B. Reksid who allegedly accepted a bribe to broker a federally funded project for a private company.

U.S. District Court for the NMI visiting judge Michael Ponsor excused the jurors at 4:30pm yesterday and instructed them to resume their deliberations today, Friday.

Reksid is facing one count of bribery concerning a program receiving federal funds. Both prosecution and the defense counsels completed their closing arguments yesterday.

Assistant U.S. attorney Eric O’Malley said the $3,000 that Reksid received from contractor John Scott was not a loan.

“It wasn’t a loan, but it was repaid. It was repaid with favors,” O’Malley said.

Defense attorney Mark Hanson said the 70-year-old Reksid never tried to bribe anyone, including Scott. “You must find Franz Reksid not guilty,” he told the 14 jurors.

O’Malley said that on Feb. 12, 2009 the defendant, who was the DPL’s then project manager for the unexploded ordnance cleanup project in Marpi, asked $3,000 from Scott and it is a fact that Scott gave the money to him.

O’Malley said on that same day, Feb. 12, 2009, the old contract with Scott’s All-Hazard Management Professionals Inc. had expired and there was no contract yet for the $200,000 phase 3 cleanup.

Reksid, the prosecutor said, was in a position to help and Feb. 12, 2009, was the perfect day to hit Scott for the money.

“The defendant abused his position. He abused the public trust for his personal benefit,” O’Malley said.

He cited a change order that Reksid submitted to then DPL secretary John DelRosario that extends the time for the project. Reksid recommended that the change order be approved so the contract may proceed. DelRosario signed the ch
ange order thinking it was only for an extension of time.
O’Malley noted that the signatory page in the 2009 amended contract that Reksid gave to DelRosario is a photocopy of the 2007 contract. The 2007 contract was in the amount of $297,152 and the 2009 contract was for $497,152—a difference of $200,000, according to O’Malley.

O’Malley said that Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos testified that the amended contract was never sent to the Department of Finance where he served then as secretary.

Scott earlier testified that he gave Reksid $3,000 as a loan but admitted that he never got the money back.

Hanson said that Reksid did not solicit a bribe from Scott but borrowed money from him.

Hanson said the $500,000 figure for the entire project was decided in 2007 so everything was planned that period by a committee and not by Reksid. The changes, Hanson said, were needed so AMPRO could complete the job needed to do.

“After deliberating, you will come with a conclusion: Franz Reksid is innocent,” Hanson told the jurors.