By Bryan Manabat
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Variety News Staff
HEE Jung Hwang, who has been accused of kidnapping and assaulting a tour guide in August 2025, has been deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds, who asked the Superior Court to dismiss the case without prejudice.
Hwang, 39, and co-defendants Yichuan Bai, 40, and Peter Deleon Guerrero, 58, face charges stemming from an Aug. 25, 2025, incident in Chinatown, where a tour guide was allegedly lured under false pretenses, kidnapped, and assaulted. Prosecutors later expanded the case after a search of Hwang’s residence uncovered a stolen firearm, ammunition, and controlled substances.
Hinds told Variety on Monday that the case against Bai and Deleon Guerrero will continue. He said he requested dismissal of the case against Hwang because of Hwang’s deportation from the CNMI.
Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho granted the request on Jan. 23 and issued an order dismissing the case without prejudice, allowing it to be refiled.
Earlier, Judge Camacho approved a stipulation from the parties authorizing the release of Hwang’s passport to ICE to facilitate his deportation. The order followed a stipulation jointly filed by defense attorney Joaquin DLG Torres, who represents Hwang, and Hinds, acknowledging that ICE required the passport to ensure timely compliance with deportation procedures. They agreed the document would be released to an ICE agent on Dec. 12, three days before the scheduled removal on Dec. 15.
The stipulation emphasized that the agreement was entered voluntarily “for the purpose of facilitating the lawful deportation of Hee Jung Hwang.”
Hwang was previously ordered removed from the United States by Nov. 12, 2025, after Immigration Judge Clarence Wagner ruled that his CNMI criminal charges did not affect his removability. The judge denied a continuance request and found Hwang ineligible for voluntary departure, citing his overstayed visa and pending violent crime allegations.
Bryan Manabat was a liberal arts student of Northern Marianas College where he also studied criminal justice. He is the recipient of the NMI Humanities Award as an Outstanding Teacher (Non-Classroom) in 2013, and has worked for the CNMI Motheread/Fatheread Literacy Program as lead facilitator.
