Gov. Arnold I. Palacios, 2nd left, walks toward Courtroom 220A to testify in the bench trial of Chief of Parole Nick Masga Reyes.
Chief of Parole Nick Masga Reyes leaves the courtroom after a hearing on Monday.
GOVERNOR Arnold I. Palacios, and CNMI Board of Parole member Lucinda Selepeo testified Monday in the bench trial of Chief of Parole Nick Masga Reyes, who is accused of forging a government employment contract.
Asked whether he knew about the extension request from the Board of Parole regarding Reyes’s employment, the governor said, “Initially, the request for personnel action by the Board of Parole [was for] a 30-day extension. That time I recommended a 90-day extension, because by the time the request had routed, it would have already expired.”
He added, “The process starts with the agency, and if it is under the governor’s office, which the parole office is, it goes over to [the governor’s office] head to get the process going. So he [Reyes] came to the office for my signature and then [he had to go] through the other [agencies:] OMB, Finance, OPM.”
In her testimony, Selepeo said she became acting parole board chairwoman in December 2022.
As acting chairwoman, she said she could not decide by herself whether to renew or not a parole office employee contract or the chief of parole’s contract. “That is a board decision,” she added.
She said she had a conversation with Reyes regarding the renewal of his contract sometime in July 2023. “He wanted me to sign his contract…renewal…for one year…. I told him that it had to go to the board,” Selepeo said.
She said the board members, in a meeting in August 2023, initially wanted a 60-day, then later a 90-day extension probationary period for the chief of parole so he could provide the board members with updates and parole operation reports.
“I had to call [the Office of Personnel Management] because I heard from the parole staffers that he was not getting paid and I wanted to ask how he could get paid,” Selepeo said.
Reyes is represented by attorneys Joaquin DLG Torres and Matthew Holley while Assistant Attorneys General James Kingman, Lucia Blanco-Maratita and David Karch appeared for the government.
Attorney Torres asked the court to continue Selepeo’s defense cross-examination to the following day, Tuesday, a request that was granted by Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho.
The Office of the Attorney General has charged Reyes with one count of misconduct in public office and four counts of forgery.
According to the OAG, Reyes forged a request for personnel action by changing the term of employment from 30 days to one year.
Reyes “completed, executed, authenticated, issued or transferred a writing that purported to be the act of another, to wit the Governor of the Commonwealth, who did not authorize the act,” the OAG stated.
