THE Office of the Attorney General’s Criminal Division, through Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds, is requesting the Superior Court to approve amended charges against Rep. Vicente Castro Camacho and his co-defendant for their alleged involvement in a domestic violence incident on Oct. 29, 2021 on Freedom Drive, China Town.
Camacho, 61, along with Teipo Nikiti, 21, were accused of assaulting Commonwealth Ports Authority master electrician Steven Koch.
Each defendant was charged by the government last year with assault and battery, and disturbing the peace. The charges were considered misdemeanors.
In his request for leave to amend the information against Camacho and Nikiti, Hinds said it is in the best interest of the government to charge Camacho with “Count I: Aggravated Assault and Battery, in violation of 6 CMC 1203(a); Count II: Strangulation, in violation of 6 CMC 14689(a)(1), and Count III: Disturbing the Peace, in violation of 6 CMC 3101(a).”
As for Nikiti, the government wants to amend the charges to “Count I: Aggravated Assault and Battery, in violation of 6 CMC 1203(a); and Count II: Disturbing the Peace, in violation of 6 CMC 3101(a).”
After careful review of the evidence, and additional investigation conducted by the AG’s office and the Department of Public Safety, Hinds said the information filed on Nov. 10, 2021 must be amended to reflect the actions of the defendants on the night of Oct. 29, 2021.
Hinds said: “The victim (Koch) has suffered serious bodily/psychological injury due to the actions of the defendants and the information should be amended to reflect those actions. Mr. Koch, as evidenced by his medical records and examinations, has sustained serious bodily/psychological injury, after the night of Oct. 29. On the night of this incident, Mr. Koch was punched multiple times and the defendant pinned his knee on Mr. Koch’s neck causing him to lose consciousness.”
The defendants’ action created a high probability of death and other bodily/psychological injuries, Hinds added.
Hinds said Koch’s injuries could not be determined within the first weeks after the incident.
“According to Dr. Norma Ada, in a letter dated Nov. 2, 2021, Koch was diagnosed with a concussion, as a direct result of the incident. Since the incident, Koch’s symptoms have persisted. Koch has memory loss. He also developed anxiety, and could not sleep, without reliving the incident. Also, as a result of being hit multiple times and losing consciousness, Koch has developed vision issues (inability to focus), which has caused Koch to have a hard time to walk straight, because of a loss of balance and coordination. Koch has felt the effects of these injuries for weeks/months and some injuries are still being endured,” Hinds said.
He said the government also wants to charge Camacho with strangulation because the defendant pinned his knee on the neck of the victim, “impeding normal breath or circulation of Koch, causing him to not be able to breathe and may have rendered him unconscious.”
According to Hinds, Camacho and the Kochs are adults who are related to each other up to the fourth degree of consanguinity.
Hinds said based on the evidence that has been discovered since the incident, the court should grant the request to amend the charges.
Superior Court Associate Judge Kenneth L. Govendo, who is handling the case, has vacated the hearing on the government’s motion for leave to amend the information set for April 7, and rescheduled it to June 9, 2022, at 1:30 p.m. in Courtroom 205A.
Camacho is represented by attorney Michael A. White while Nikiti is represented by a court-appointed counsel, Assistant Public Defender Vina Seelam.
The other individual who was also accused of assaulting Koch is reported to be a 14-year-old juvenile. No information about him is available to the public.
Camacho, was arrested by the Department of Public Safety on the evening of Nov. 2, 2021, but he immediately posted $1,250 cash bail and is out of custody.
Koch, his wife and daughter on Nov. 1 petitioned the Superior Court, seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent Camacho and three other individuals “from engaging in any further physical harm, disturbance, harassment, blocking, threats and verbal abuse.”
The petitioners were represented by attorney Charity Hodson.
On Nov. 12, 2021, Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho found cause for domestic violence, and granted temporary restraining order and one-year protective order against Rep. Vicente Castro Camacho, Ignacio “Ike” S. Concepcion, Fiel Reynaldo Ortiz, and Tiepo A. Nikiti.
“This order of protection shall continue in effect for a period of one year unless extended or dissolved by the court in writing and shall expire on November 8, 2022,” Judge Camacho said.
The incident stemmed from a long-standing animosity between Koch and his brother-in-law, Concepcion, and took place near the homes of Koch and Concepcion on Freedom Drive, China Town at around 11 p.m. on Oct. 29, 2021.
Vicente Camacho
