Department of Public Safety officers did not find George Taitano Manglona at the residence of his mother during a random check on Friday night.
On Saturday afternoon, police returned with a warrant and arrested Manglona who was brought to the Department of Corrections facility.
Associate Judge Ramona V. Manglona placed Manglona and Ignacio T. Deleon Guerrero, 57, also known as Kaboyu, on house arrest on Friday afternoon.
Manglona and Deleon Guerrero was ordered to observe a curfew from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m., and were released to their third party custodians.
The Attorney General’s Office earlier charged George Manglona and Deleon Guerrero with illegal possession and trafficking of “ice.”
Deleon Guerrero and Manglona also illegally possessed marijuana, the AGO said.
Moreover, according to the AGO, Deleon Guerrero and Manglona conspired to commit “ice” trafficking.
Deleon Guerrero was also charged with unlawfully removing a green sea turtle, and numerous trochus shells from Saipan waters, and unlawfully removing a fruit bat.
The defendants have denied the charges.
During a hearing on Friday, Variety learned that George Manglona “acted crazy” in the court hallway a little before 4 p.m. after the government witness was sworn in.
Assistant Public Defender Michael Brown, the counsel for George Manglona, said there was “contact” between the government witness and prosecutors.
Assistant Attorneys General Russel Lorfing and Shelli Neal, the prosecutors, told the court that the government witness wanted to talk to them, but they declined.
This was the “situation” George Manglona witnessed, the prosecutors told the court.
They said George Manglona made a “veiled threat” to the witness and to the prosecutors.
“I will not allow inappropriate actions,” Judge Manglona told the defendants.
Joseph James Norita Camacho, counsel for Deleon Guerrero, said that was not what he witnessed nor heard, referring to the prosecutors’ version of the incident in the hallway.
Camacho told the court that George Manglona was concerned about the contact between the government witness and the prosecutors.
Fearing for the safety of the government witness, the prosecutors asked for police presence in the courtroom.
At 4:10 p.m., the court called the government witness who was in the witness rom.
But a detective said the witness “refused to go out” and was “shaking in the corner of the room with his head covered by his shirt.”
Judge Manglona directed a court marshal to accompany the detective and to ask again the government witness to testify. But the witness still refused.
Judge Manglona then directed government prosecutors and the defense counsels, together with a court marshal, to talk to the witness.
At 4:20 p.m., the court was told that witness was “not ready to testify.”
The prosecution asked for an early dismissal of the hearing and to reconvene for trial at 9 a.m. today.
Judge Manglona called in the jurors and dismissed them.
She placed both defendants under house arrest from Friday until Monday.
Camacho objected, saying the order was “unfair.” He added that his client was “very cooperative.”
Judge Manglona said the court had to consider the concerns raised by the prosecution.
At 4:50 p.m., Judge Manglona called for a break, and asked both defendants to leave the courtroom.
The government witness was then brought in and the judge explained to him what was being done with his situation.
The judge also assigned a detective to provide protection to the witness.
She instructed the detective not to talk about the case, although he could talk about safety and security with the government witness.
The judge said there was no need for an order of protection for the prosecutors as arrangements could be made between the AGO and DPS.
.
