Former Yona Mayor Jesse Blas is asking to temporarily be released from federal custody where he is being held on drug-related extortion and bribery charges.
The former mayor who took a deal with the government argues that he is not a danger to the community and is asking to be released from custody pending sentencing.
His reasons for the request not only include allowing him to take care of personal matters but also the inhumane conditions at the Hagatna detention Facility and references to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But according to the government, those reasons are not sufficient for his release.
Assistant US Attorney Laura Sambataro filed opposition, stating that the federal court has already deemed Blas a danger to the community.
She also shot down the request stating that there is no evidence of any conditions at the HDF which render his confinement inhumane.
Finally, she argued that releasing Blas or any other nonviolent defendants in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic as his attorney John Gorman is advocating for is not a basis for release.
Sambataro says there is no new information to justify Blas’ release.
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