"CNMI federal judge holds billionaire 'Dragon Lady' in contempt of court" 23 February 2021

Federal Judge Ramona V. Manglona today held Ciu Li Jie in contempt of court for failing to comply with a subpoena. A schedule of fees will be finalized by this Friday, and Ms. Jie, commonly known in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as 'The Dragon Lady,' will have to pay those fees from her personal funds by March 5.

If she doesn't pay on time, the judge threatened to send her to jail. If Jie so much as asks for an extension or a pay plan, the judge said she will haul her in for a debtor examination and make her open up her books and prove she can't pay.

Ms. Jie is the chairwoman of Imperial Pacific International, the Hong Kong-based parent company of IPI CNMI, which runs the Garapan casino. Ms. Jie's company is chartered in Bermuda and trades on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

IPI CNMI is a defendant in the case of Tianming Wang, et al. v. Gold Mantis Construction Decoration (CNMI), LLC. The case was brought by overseas Chinese workers, when IPI CNMI subcontractor Gold Mantis failed to pay wages and it was discovered that developers also subjected the workers to inhumane living conditions. [...]