The CNMI Department of Public Safety has terminated the remaining 12 officers out of the 28 cops who were placed on administrative duty in March after they faced allegations of illegal overtime. CNMI DPS Commissioner Clement Bermudes recently gave an update at a press conference on Saipan.

"From the 28 as it further developed, some more were reinstated, some resigned, and that left [us] with 12 of them. The 12 were…unfortunately we lost that 12 this past month. We have terminated them from the department because the allegations were substantiated against them," he told KUAM News.

The police chief says some of those officers have appealed to the Civil Service Commission and DPS is preparing a response. KUAM asked him about the circumstances that led to the investigation.

He added, "Everybody clocks in on biometrics. Surprisingly you know most of them didn't use biometrics…so it's a manual write-in. One of the policies that I have instituted to address that is that it requires everybody to use the biometric and anybody that does not has to write me a letter justifying why they failed. You know it ranges from 'I was too busy ever at the front desk coming in'…so different reasons. But what I'm trying to see is a pattern of something. That's when we start catching. So to address that is to ensure that everybody times-in using the biometric time clock."

With a decrease in officers, Bermudes says they are working to launch another academy with the Northern Marianas College to bring on another 30 officers. Currently, DPS has 168 officers. He says the ideal number would be 250.