The trial of the former attorney general of the Northern Marianas, Edward Buckingham, has begun at the Superior Court in Saipan.
The trial began on Monday with the Civil Division chief of the attorney general's office, Gilber Birnbrich, and the AG's executive assistant, Frieda Demapan, taking the stand as prosecution witnesses.
Mr Buckingham is facing 8 charges in connection with an alleged violation of election laws and the illegal awarding of a sole-source contract, among others.
He fled the territory after a penal summons was issued against him last year before eventually being arrested in the US state of Colorado after which he returned to the CNMI to hand himself in.
Mr Buckingham is the first attorney general in CNMI history to stand trial on criminal charges.
