The prosecution said Dongjun Li also presented to U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspectors at the Saipan international airport fraudulent marriage documents which were material to the determination of his immigration status.
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona has directed the clerk of court to summon 45 prospective jurors to appear today in court.
Dongjun Li was indicted for immigration document fraud, and false statement or entry, which he denied.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Beverly McCallum is prosecuting the case.
Yesterday, Manglona denied Li’s motion to compel discovery to produce current copy of the Inspector’s Field Manual of the United States Customs and Border Protection or other CBP documents.
In her written order, Manglona said: “Mr. Li’s initial arguments as to the materiality of the Field Manual or other CBP documents are merely conclusory and are not persuasive. The extent to which CBP officer followed internal policies and procedures during their contact with Mr. Li is a collateral matter and is not relevant to a shield defense to the crimes as charged.”
The court earlier denied the motion of court-appointed defense attorney Mark Scoggins to dismiss the charge of immigration document fraud “because the I-512 advance parole authorization form is a document prescribed by statute or legislation as evidence of authorized stay in the United States.”
On or about July 15, 2011, the indictment stated, Dongjun Li presented Form I-512 suspected of being counterfeit to Delta Airlines personnel as he attempted to check-in for an outbound flight to Los Angeles via Narita, Japan.
Dongjun Li has paid a private citizen over $1,000 in return for receiving false immigration documents that would allow him unlawfully to gain access to the states, the indictment said.
Authorities said Dongjun Li’s Form I-512 bore the imprimatur of both the now defunct Immigration and Naturalization Service, and the Department of Homeland Security. Additionally, the INS Form I-512 did not bear an Alien File number.
The document erroneously indicated that INS co-existed with DHS. INS ceased to exist in 2003.
Dongjun Li also claimed he was married to Pauline Manahane on May 10, 2011, based on a presented CNMI application for marriage license and record of marriage, the indictment added.
