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Ex-chair of defunct CTC pleads guilty
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Posted on Nov 18 2008
James Michael P. Fitzgerald, former chairman of the defunct Commonwealth Telecommunications Commission accused of stealing $88,202.92 from CTC by issuing unauthorized checks to himself, has entered a guilty plea.
During Monday afternoon’s hearing, the 53-year-old Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to five counts of theft involving a total of $16,591.66.
Superior Court Associate Judge David A. Wiseman accepted Fitzgerald’s plea and set the sentencing for Feb. 4, 2009, at 9am.
In March 2008, the Attorney General’s Office charged the defendant with 28 counts of theft and one count of misconduct in public office.
Fitzgerald and his lawyer, Joey P. San Nicolas, signed a plea agreement with the government, represented by special assistant attorney general Joseph J. Przyuski.
For pleading guilty to five counts of theft, the government agreed to dismiss the remaining charges.
Under the plea agreement, the government will not argue for a jail term exceeding five years.
Fitzgerald agreed to pay full restitution to the government. He will also write a letter of apology to CNMI citizens, to be published in the Letters to the Editor sections in the two local newspapers.
Fitzgerald is also required to pay court costs and probation fees. Upon completing the prison sentence, he will be placed on supervised probation.
The defendant will also be permanently barred from re-employment with the CNMI government.
According to the factual basis of the agreement, Fitzgerald stole from CTC $4,375 on April 18, 2006; $5,750 on April 26, 2006; $2,775 on May 2, 2006; $1,775 on May 8, 2006; and $2,916.66 on May 16, 2006.
According to Public Auditor investigator Rolando Decena’s report, Fitzgerald wrote himself a total of 28 CTC checks between April and October 2006.
Decena said none of these 28 checks have supporting documents and none were properly authorized.
Also included was a CTC check that Fitzgerald allegedly used to pay for his wife’s plane ticket to Florida.
CTC was abolished in October 2006, with the signing of the law that created the Public Utilities Commission.
