Deliberations in Ataligs case enter Day 3

The deliberations in the corruption case against Rota Mayor Efraim M. Atalig and his girlfriend, Evelyn Atalig, continues today, with federal court jurors entering Day 3 of the deliberation process.

According to federal court clerks, as of 4:30pm yesterday, jurors continued to deliberate on the fate of Efraim and Evelyn Atalig. Clerks added that deliberation could take up to four days.

Federal court jurors will meet again to continue their deliberations today at 8:15am.

The Ataligs are being charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and false statement.

According to Saipan Tribune archives, U.S. attorney Eric S. O’Malley, counsel for the U.S. government, said there’s ample evidence to show that Atalig and Evelyn arranged government-funded travels from Rota to San Diego, California; Saipan; Palau, and Guam, mainly for personal and not official reasons.

The prosecution cited at least eight trips taken by the Ataligs at different times in 2018 to Guam, Palau, the U.S. mainland, South Korea, and Saipan. O’Malley said the Ataligs were cheating the CNMI of taxpayers’ money.

O’Malley said the Ataligs spent five days for a one-day 9th Annual Chamorro Cultural Festival and each claimed eight days’ worth of per diems. The prosecutor said the Ataligs and two others from Rota and two from Saipan were in that trip.

Regarding the April 2018 trip to Saipan, O’Malley said Efraim Atalig signed for the government travel authorizations, or TAs, for himself and Evelyn for the 23rd Micronesia Islands Forum and the Flame Tree Festival.

With respect to May 2018 trip to Palau, the prosecutor said the travel was coordinated by the Department of Community and Cultural Affairs-Aging Office. Again, Evelyn Atalig had no reason to be in that government-funded trip, he said.

Regarding the June 2018 trip to Guam, the prosecutor said that Atalig signed government TAs for himself and eight other government employees to travel from Rota to Guam, as well as two TAs for plane charters, reportedly to check a U.S. Department of Defense office that handles the sale of surplus equipment.

The prosecutor also discussed other trips involving the Ataligs, including the August 2018 trip to Saipan for the Agricultural Fair. O’Malley said the primary purpose of that Saipan trip was to participate in a partisan GOP campaign rally. He said the Agricultural Fair was a one-day event, but the Ataligs remained on Saipan for three days.