According to Officer A. Mashburn, she and her partner were at the Vietnam Veterans Park overlook in Umatac keeping track on vehicles to see if the drivers and passengers were wearing seatbelts.
They signaled a pickup truck to pull over when they noticed three Asian men were sitting in the back on top of a silver tool box.
“As soon as we made the stop signal, the three guys jumped out of the truck and started to run toward the bus stop,” Mashburn told Variety. “We were able to take them into custody and put them in the bus stop.”
She added that one of the men needed to use the restroom so they had the driver, who turned out to be their “boss,” escort him.
Mashburn said she was right behind the men when suddenly all three made another attempt to dash off. One of them managed to escape and went into the valley area right below the park. The other two were taken back to the bus stop along with their boss.
Police were scouring the immediate area to look for the third suspect.
When asked if the men they apprehended are suspected illegal immigrants, Mashburn said is being looked into especially since the men didn’t have any papers with them.
“We have no black and white to prove, and according to their boss, he’s not sure of their status as far as (suspect illegal) aliens,” she said. “All we wanted to do was tell them to get into the truck and buckle up their seatbelts, but they ended up [running].”
GPD spokesman Allan Guzman said the men are believed to have overstayed on Guam beyond the time allowed in their work visa. Details about their employment were not available as of press time.
The men are now in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security.
Guzman confirmed the two men were in custody. However, the names of the men have not been released pending investigation. The third individual is believed to still be at large.
One of the suspects smashed a window of a police cruiser, which is also under investigation.
GPD has begun reinforcing motorists’ compliance with the seatbelt requirement following enactment of Public Law 30-33, which brings the local law up to federal standards. The law took effect on Jan. 1.
