Borja allegedly struck handcuffed man 3-4 times on left side of head

Police Officer Earl Marc E. Borja allegedly struck a handcuffed man “3-4 times on left side of head with a five-stage extendable baton” behind the former La Fiesta Mall in San Roque on Dec. 19, 2025, according to a sworn complaint filed by the Office of the Attorney General’s Investigative Division.

The man told investigators he was “still handcuffed behind his back when he was assaulted with the baton.” He described a “scraping/swinging motion” and said he “felt pounding, blood gushing from his head.”

Earlier that day, officers Borja and Elijah Villar responded to LN Market in Chalan Kanoa. Villar later told investigators he did not arrest the man but decided to “10-19 (transport)” him away from the area after determining he did not have probable cause for arrest. He said he placed the man in handcuffs “for safety purposes.”

According to the complaint, the man was placed in the rear seat of the patrol vehicle and transported north. He requested to be dropped off at Pau Pau Beach. The officers drove to Pau Pau but turned around due to the presence of people and proceeded to the area behind La Fiesta.

At that location, the man said the officer in a blue uniform opened his door and asked, “Do you want to fight?”

He replied, “no I don’t want sir.”

He alleged that after striking him with the baton, Borja used his shirt to wipe blood from his head before removing the handcuffs and leaving the area.

Medical records reviewed by AGID show the man’s chief complaint was “pain, bump, and wound on the left side of his head after being hit by DPS officers.” He reported “blacking out temporarily (unable to see) but remaining conscious,” and mild nausea. He was diagnosed with a head contusion and abrasions.

Chief investigator Ikluk T. Masayos stated in his sworn declaration that he is “the chief investigator with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), Office of the Attorney General, Investigative Division (AGID) and has been so employed for 7 years.”

Masayos said AGID received the case referral on Jan. 7, 2026.

Radio log sheets identified Borja and Villar as the officers who responded to LN Market at approximately 12:51pm. GPS Activity Tracker data confirmed their patrol vehicle traveled from LN Market to Pau Pau Beach and then to the La Fiesta area.

The complaint states that at 1:36pm, Borja called Central and reported “10-19 (radio code for transfer) at Pau Pau Beach as per Brett’s request and that Brett was hitting his head on door.”

However, according to the GPS tracker, “when Borja called Central at 1:36pm, they were already in the village of Tanapag, heading South to DPS Central without” the man.

Villar told investigators that when he returned to the vehicle after briefly stepping away, Borja handed him the baton and said, “I accidentally made (the man] bleed.”

Villar responded, “Bro, what the..?”

He described the man as bleeding “like a stream of red liquid substance streaming from the side of his face.” Villar said Borja rinsed the man’s head with water and used his shirt to wipe his face before removing the handcuffs.

According to Villar, Borja later told him to “stick to a story” that they dropped the man off at the exit of Pau Pau and that he “pushed him and told him...and then ran off.” Villar said Borja repeatedly told him to stick to the “story.”

During his Jan. 20, 2026 interview with AGID, Borja waived his constitutional rights in writing. He stated he punched the man “with his knuckles once or twice (downward punch)” after being bumped while uncuffing him. He denied using a baton and said he did not recall saying, “I accidentally made [the man] bleed.”

Masayos requested that the court “issue an arrest warrant for Earl Marc E. Borja DOB: 09/10/1999 for the indicated charges and that this court set bail at the amount it finds suitable to fit these charges.”

Masayos declared under oath that the complaint was “true and correct to the best of your affiant’s knowledge.”

Borja was previously ordered released on $20,000 bail in connection with the case.