Chief Justice Arthur Ngiraklsong on December 5 granted the motion of Independent Counsel Lewis K. Harley to dismiss without prejudice the cheating, forgery, conspiracy and money laundering charges filed against Llecholch.
The trial for this case was supposed to be held yesterday, December 8.Harley on December 5 submitted a motion to dismiss the case against Llecholch.Harley states in his affidavit in support of his motion to dismiss that dismissal of the case is in good faith for the purpose of fair administration of justice and not to harass the defendant.Harley earlier had filed a motion to continue the trial against Llecholch.The court granted the motion and set the trial for yesterday, December 8.The trial was originally set for November 24.The case was in connection with the $1,000,000 loan from the Palau Civil Service Pension Plan by the PSB Board of Directors and officers in 2006.Llecholch and the other officials of PSB Mack Timothy Taunton, Mario Gulibert, Tadao Ngotel, Hideo Termeteet and the CSPP Board of Trustees Evence Imetengel, Irene Francisco, Elbuchel Sadang, Leo Ben Teriong, John Wong and Wilbert Kamerang were all charged for “unlawfully obtaining the loan and used it to support the bank’s liquidity problem by false pretenses.”Presley Etibek, Koichi Wong, Deborah Rengiil and Naomi Ueki and Emory Mesubed were also charged for the same offenses.However charges against Koichi Wong, John Wong and Irene Francisco were dismissed without prejudice on December 2.Harley moved for the dismissal of the cases against the three defendants after they agreed to cooperate with the ongoing investigation concerning the closing of PSB.
