Nick Reyes
THE jury trial of former Chief of Parole Nick M. Reyes and his co-defendant Chuilian Fu, owner of F&S Corporation, will begin today.
They were charged with conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office, conspiracy to commit theft by deception, and theft by deception. Both defendants have denied the charges.
Superior Court Judge Teresa Kim-Tenorio will be presiding over the trial.
Reyes and Fu are represented by attorneys Joaquin Torres and Anthony Aguon, while Assistant Attorney General James Robert Kingman is prosecuting the case.
Kingman recently notified the court that the prosecution will use a Chamorro interpreter during the trial because one of the government witnesses believes it would help him better understand the proceedings and respond to questions in his first language.
Kingman said he does not speak Chamorro and “will require assistance for their line of questioning and any responses that may arise during cross-examination by defense counsel.”
He said the government will call Dolores Aldan as a Chamorro language interpreter for the duration of the jury trial.
For his part, Torres filed a notice that he will exercise his right to speak in Chamorro at the jury trial.
Background
According to the information filed by the Office of the Attorney General in Superior Court, on or about Oct. 4, 2022, on Saipan, “Nick Masga Reyes agreed with…Chuilian Fu that one or both would engage in or solicit theft of property by deception, to wit, the construction of a patio at the Parole Office purported to be constructed by a tailoring company owned by Chuilian Fu’s F&S Corporation in the amount of $9,997.80, but actually constructed by uncompensated labor performed by parolees under the direction of…Reyes.”
