Department of Public Safety’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles examiner William A. Hocog, Hongmei Sun and Hui Qiang Yan, also known as Hui Chang, each admitted the offense of conspiracy to unlawfully produce and transfer identification document.
Hocog will be sentenced on Sept. 13, 2011, while Hongmei Sun and Hui Qiang Yan will be sentenced on the next day, Coughenour said.
The three defendants accepted and signed a plea agreement with the federal government that was filed under seal.
The court said the presentence investigation report on the three defendants should be submitted on Aug. 1, 2011.
The three defendants were represented by court-appointed defense attorneys Vicente Salas, Robert Torres, and Stephen Woodruff.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Schuler is prosecuting the case.
Mohammad Jahangir Miah and his wife Tahira Dolores Miah were also indicted. They have denied the charges.
Hocog, Mr. Miah, Mrs. Miah, Hongmei, and Hui Chang were charged with one count of conspiracy to unlawfully produce and transfer identification card and eight counts of unlawful production of identification document, according to the indictment.
The conspiracy occurred from on or about April 16, 2010 to on or about June 18, 2010, according to the indictment.
Applicants for CNMI driver’s license were required to pay between $230 and $400 by the defendants in order to receive their drivers’ license, the prosecution said.
All defendants were on pretrial release conditions after each of them posted a $5,000 unsecured bond.
