MTM mayor: community must come together to fight major crime

An arrest has been made and the investigation continues into the death of Lucianna Polly who was found Saturday evening in Mongmong-Toto-Maite.

KUAM News sat down with village mayor who shares an important message of coming together as a community, especially in a day in age when Guam is facing major crimes.

"It takes a community effort," Mayor Rudy Paco told KUAM News. "If we all work together in our neighborhood watch and with the assistance of GPD, I think we can solve these problems that are occurring in our community."

It was just days ago when the tri-village mayor received a message from his neighborhood watch group that there was a lifeless woman discovered by four neighborhood children who were riding their bicycles along Ramirez Way.

"Right now it's a good place to ride the bicycle because there is no traffic at all and apparently that's where they stumbled into the victim," Paco said. "This is one of the first incidents we have ever encountered here in our community."

Mayor Paco confirms the area is a private area and that when an investor purchased property further down the street, the property owner blocked the entire way off as it has become an illegal dumping site.

"Since we blocked that off, we put boulders to block the entrance, a lot of the FSM would hang around there and drink their alcohol," he said 

According to the village leader the victim, 37-year-old Polly and suspect 25-year-old Katner Herry are not from MTM.


"To my understanding, Lucianna Polly is homeless and she is normally down there by the Agana pool area," Paco said. 

This is information Mayor Paco says he received from a source related to Polly, however, he could not disclose whom.

As for Katner Herry, the MTM mayors office checked their records and he's also not registered in their village.

Yesterday, Herry appeared before Magistrates Judge Jonathan Quan. He faces murder as a first-degree felony and aggravated assault as a second-degree felony. 

Polly was found on the grassy side of the roadway and without pants on and her shirt was pulled up around her neck, according to court documents. Police noted severe bruising and massive swelling to her face and that her eyes were swollen completely shut.

Police were able to identify Polly and Herry through surveillance footage in the area. When they went to pick up Herry at his home, they noticed blood on the doorknob. He also had
visible abrasions and swelling to his knuckles and a scratch underneath his eye.

According to court documents, Herry told police he was with Polly in the early morning hours of Jan. 25. They were headed to a gas station when Polly told him to wait for her and he fell asleep.

Herry alleges he became angry when Polly woke him up by pouring beer on him. He told police he punched her several times in the face and blacked out while chasing her. He also admitted to knowing he killed Polly, court documents state.

In court, cash bail was set at $100,000.

Mayor Paco expressed his condolences to the victim's family and echoes this message to all of Guam.

"It takes a community effort to build a solid foundation," he said. 
"Because I can't build that foundation by myself, it takes the community effort to build that foundation."

Kerry will appear back in court on Feb. 6 for a preliminary hearing. This is the first arrest made in connection to Polly's death that is still under investigation and awaits autopsy results.