Title: Former CNMI Bar Association Executive Director Charged with Bank and Wire Fraud in Northern Mariana Islands

Charges Filed against Peonie Cabrera

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI) has accused Peonie Cabrera, the former executive director of the CNMI Bar Association, of bank and wire fraud. The charges were filed in federal court on Tuesday, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric O’Malley.

• Cabrera faces four counts: two counts of bank fraud and two counts of wire fraud
• No comment was given by the current CNMI Bar Association President, Charity Hodson

Bank Fraud Allegations (Count One and Two)

From April 4, 2019, to May 4, 2023, and from September 20, 2019, to March 12, 2020, Peonie Cabrera allegedly committed bank fraud by:

1. Knowingly writing and cashing checks from a bank account at the Bank of Hawaii belonging to the Northern Marianas Bar Association, without having the right to do so (Count One).
2. Submitting a falsified signature card to the Bank of Guam and made cash withdrawals (Count Two), both in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344(2).

Wire Fraud Allegations (Count Three and Four)

From April 14, 2020, to June 11, 2021, and from June 18, 2021, to February 24, 2023, Peonie Cabrera devised a scheme to defraud and obtained money and property through false and fraudulent representations, causing wire transfers from accounts belonging to the Northern Marianas Bar Association at the Bank of Hawaii to a third-party payment company, which she then diverted for her personal use (Count Three), violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343.

Similarly, between June 18, 2021, and February 24, 2023, using false and fraudulent representations, Cabrera caused members of the Northern Marianas Bar Association to make wire transfers into third-party payment accounts she owned and controlled, intending for her personal use, also in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343 (Count Four).

Additional Details

No additional details about the case were available as of press time Tuesday evening.