12 caught in illegal taxi dragnet

A crackdown on illegal taxis on Saipan conducted by combined law enforcers from different agencies resulted in the arrest of 12 persons in western Garapan Saturday night.

Department of Public Safety Commissioner Claudio K. Norita and Attorney General Matthew Gregory told the media yesterday that nine men were arrested for operating illegal taxicabs, one woman was nabbed for prostitution, and two men for overstaying in the CNMI.

Ten vehicles used in the illegal taxi operation were impounded and towed to the Department of Corrections for securing purposes, said Norita and Gregory during a news briefing in the Governor’s Office’s conference room.

The nine taxi operators were Dong Shun Chen, 38; Jun Yang, 29; Xue Zhe Quan, 33; Yan Li Xia, 36; Guanghua Wu, 28; Hong Fei Cheng, 37; Dong Shan Luo, 36; Yong Zhang, 25; and Xiao Jun Cao, 27.

One of the operators was treated for scratches he sustained after he tried to run away from officers during a violator’s stop. Medics treated him for minor scratches to the left knee and forehead, according to a police report prepared by Detective Jeff F. Olopai.

Arrested for prostitution was Xue Qin Huang, 40. Di Fang Xu, 23, and Hu Li, 22, were detained for allegedly overstaying in the Commonwealth.

Norita said the operation, dubbed “Strike Force Echo,” is an offshoot of Gov. Benigno R. Fitial’s anti-prostitution task force.

“Our approach was basically to target the illegal taxis that roam in western Garapan, using the law that was passed in the 14th Legislature that makes it illegal for anybody to operate a taxi without a taxi permit and license and give DPS the authority to seize the taxis and forfeit the taxis for the government,” Norita said.

The commissioner said they conducted a surveillance operation on up to 13 vehicles that they suspect to be illegal taxis.

“Of the 13, we got enough probable cause on 10 to make a stop, make the arrest, as well as impound the vehicles,” he said.

Norita said that Immigration and the Attorney General’s Investigative Unit were active in the investigation by also processing about 15 passengers that were in the taxis.

Norita said the illegal taxis are an integral part of moving prostitutes at night.

“We said we’d start with the illegal taxis. Again it’s an offshoot of the anti-prostitution [drive]. It’s an approach toward finding a way to curtail [prostitution]. One way to do it is to take away the taxis,” the commissioner said.

In his report to acting CID commander Sgt. Sylvan M. Rangamar, Olopai said that enforcement measures of Public Law 14-72 were identified and given to CID for execution on Friday. The purpose of the measure was to identify, arrest, and forfeit illegal taxis on the island, he said.

On Saturday at 6pm, the detective said, enforcers from CID, the Labor Enforcement Section, and Division of Immigration conducted the “Strike Force Echo” operation against illegal taxis within the western Garapan district.

At 9:45pm, the operation went into full force with assistance from DPS patrol and traffic officers. All identified suspected illegal taxis were stopped and the drivers were arrested and brought to the DPS Boating Safety Section Office.

Olopai said all passengers in the taxis were also taken into custody.

After investigators from the Attorney General Investigative Unit and Labor personnel screened them, all, except the three, were released.

During the course of the investigation, Miss Huang was arrested for prostitution after a Japanese man, who was with the defendant in an illegal taxi, confessed to investigators that he had sex with her for a fee.

AGIU agents detained the alleged overstaying aliens—Xu and Li—at the Department of Corrections for further investigation.