Drug smuggler sentenced to 5 years
The U.S. District Court for the NMI has imposed a 64-month sentence on a man who recently pleaded guilty to smuggling 4.9 lbs of methamphetamine into the CNMI through the U.S Postal Service.
Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona imposed yesterday a 64-month prison sentence—a little over five years—on Zhang Yuzhu. with credit for time served.
Following his release from prison, Zhang will be placed on probation for three years.
In addition to his supervised release, Manglona also ordered Zhang perform 100 hours of community service in lieu of a fine and at the direction of the U.S. Probation Office.
After the hearing, Zhang was remanded to U.S Marshals Service custody.
Zhang was initially charged with importation of contraband, trafficking of a controlled substance, and illegal possession of a controlled substance. He pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance as part of a plea deal.
The same charges were filed against Zhang with the Superior Court, which later dismissed the local case at the behest of the Office of the Attorney General.
According to Saipan Tribune archives, Zhang allegedly attempted to smuggle 4.9 lbs of methamphetamine from California through the U.S. Postal Service. The seized contraband has a street value of approximately $700,000.
The “ice” was discovered on March 19 during a Customs routine inspection of a large parcel addressed to Zhang. Inside the parcel, Customs officer Franklin Sablan saw three wooden cases containing chinaware. Upon further inspection of the cases, Sablan noticed a square object wrapped in duct tape under the chinaware inside the wooden case. While examining the square object, the officer noticed white crystalline substance spilling into the wooden case.
After procuring the parcel and its contents as evidence, the items were transported to the Customs office at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport for processing and testing, where it turned out positive for methamphetamine.
Cocaine
