Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Bail is set at $5,000 for a man who allegedly struck another man with a metal pipe, while he was naked in bed with his wife.

The defendant is charged with one count of second degree assault, a class D felony; and third degree assault (domestic violence), a class A misdemeanor. He made his initial appearance in District Court Thursday morning.

Preliminary examination is scheduled for May 13th.

According to the government's case, the victim walked into the DPS Tafuna Substation this past Tuesday, to report that he had been assaulted by another man while he was sleeping.

According to the victim, he was with the defendant's wife when the defendant came to his home and assaulted him with what appeared to be a bat.

Cops who responded to the call were able to locate the defendant and his wife at their home in Mapusaga Fou. When police asked about the alleged weapon that was used to assault the victim, the defendant produced a "silver metal pipe about 30 inches in length and 1/2 inch in diameter".

The defendant was taken to the DPS Tafuna substation, along with his wife.

The woman told police that she went to the victim's home to return his shirt and when her husband called the victim to inquire of her whereabouts, she told him to tell her husband that she wasn't there.

According to the woman, she went to the victim's residence and stayed, waiting "for a better time" to return home. But she ended up sleeping there.

According to police, the woman said she was "shocked' when she woke up and found her husband's hands around her neck, "about to strangle her". She said she sat up and at the same time, the victim was sitting up too. And that's when her husband hit the victim twice with a metal pipe, causing the victim to "collapse on the bed". The defendant also punched the victim "several times," according to the woman, who said her husband "beat her up too."

When questioned by police, the defendant said his wife told him that she was going over to the victim's home to drop off his shirt. The defendant said he was accompanied by a kid, in the search for his wife. It was a bus driver who helped them locate the victim's house.

When they got there, according to the defendant, he would see from the outside that his wife and the victim were in bed, naked. He allegedly admitted to police that he entered the home and woke his wife, asking her why she was doing this to him.

He said he was angry and when the victim was about to sit up, he hit him twice with a metal pipe and punched him two times. He said the victim was lying on the bed the whole time, his head covered with a pillow.

The defendant also allegedly told police that he slapped his wife twice and dragged her outside of the house. They went home afterwards. But the kid who accompanied him re-entered the home and told him that he hit the victim again.

According to the kid, when they got to the victim's house, the defendant flashed his phone light through the window and saw his wife and the victim lying in bed naked. He said the defendant entered the home and grabbed his wife by the chin. She was begging him for mercy and that's when the defendant struck the victim with the metal pipe.

The kid said he and the couple left together, and they took the metal pipe with them.

Second degree assault is punishable by up to 5 years in jail, a fine up to $5,000 or both. Third degree assault (domestic violence) carries a maximum sentence of one year imprisonment and a fine between $150 and $1,000.