THE federal court on Wednesday sentenced Bing Li to serve 51 months or 4.25 years in prison for receiving 1,084 grams or 2.13 lbs. of methamphetamine by mail.
Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona of the District Court for the NMI also gave Li credit for eight months of time already served.
Li will be placed on supervised probation for three years after serving his sentence.
“Defendant must perform 100 hours of community service in lieu of a fine and at the direction of the U.S. Probation Office. Defendant shall pay a special assessment fee of $100 to be paid immediately after sentencing,” the judge said.
After the hearing, Li was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Li was represented by attorney Robert Torres with Chien-Li Yen as the defendant’s interpreter.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Albert Flores Jr. appeared for the federal government.
Li pled guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance (methamphetamine) on March 17, 2023.
According to the criminal complaint against Li, on Jan. 26, 2023, CNMI Customs & Biosecurity officers seized approximately 1,048 gross grams of methamphetamine from Li, who was accompanied by another person, “Individual 1,” at the U.S. Postal Office in Chalan Kanoa.
As is standard practice for CNMI Customs, its officers opened a package addressed to Li, with Li present to perform a routine customs inspection. “Upon opening the package, a white crystalized substance consistent in appearance with methamphetamine was observed in plain view. A sample from the package was field tested and returned positive for the presence of methamphetamine,” the complaint stated.
