Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man accused of setting fire to his girlfriend’s house with the intention of hurting her and her aunty told police that the reason why he planned to burn his girlfriend and her aunt was to retaliate against his girlfriend for what she had done to him in the past.

During his arrest, officers discovered a glass pipe containing methamphetamine (meth) inside.

The defendant, Jason Semeatu made his initial appearance in Court last month.

He is charged with one count of unlawful possession of meth, a felony, along with one count of 1st- degree arson (domestic violence), a class C felony, punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to seven years, a fine of up to $5,000 but not less than $150, pursuant to 47.0402, or both.

Bail is set at $15,000.

Semeatu appeared in District Court three weeks ago for his preliminary hearing, however, he waived his rights to a PX and his case was bound over to High Court for further proceedings.

Two weeks ago, the defendant appeared in High Court for an arraignment where he entered a not guilty pleas to the charges against him. Semeatu’s first pretrial conference is set for Aug 26.

THE CASE

On Mar. 13, 2022 at about 10:20p.m, a man contacted the Tafuna Police Substation (TPS) reporting a fire in a residence located in Ottoville. Several police officers responded to the call and observed a house on fire.

Officers met up with two people at the scene — the man who reported the incident and the owner of the residence. The fire was first discovered by the owner of the house who was conducting an inspection outside the house, and noticed that there was a fire burning inside his other residence located at the back of his guest house. He then ran to his aunt who was sleeping inside the house and informed her about the fire.

On the same date at about 11:09p.m, a male individual contacted the Tafuna Police Substation (TPS) and informed police officers that a house was on fire in the Tafuna area and two people were inside the burning house.

The man who called the TPS was later identified as 34-year-old Jason Semeatu, the defendant in this matter. Semeatu later proceeded to the TPS and made a confession that he started the fire at his friend’s residence in the Tafuna area.

Semeatu was Mirandized and then made a statement about what happened.

Semeatu told investigators that he was very angry with his friend for many reasons, including using him to get money by lying, borrowing money without ever paying it back, and getting into an accident in his car and not telling him.

On the morning of the fire, Semeatu said he went to his girlfriend’s house and asked her and her aunt to pay back his money she borrowed. However, his said his girlfriend lied to him saying that somebody broke into her room on the night before and stole all her property including her money.

The defendant left the house very pissed off and returned to work. Around 9p.m on the same night, he planned to do something to hurt his girlfriend for lying to him.

He went to his girlfriend’s house and he opened the back door and the first thing he saw was a machete. He decided not to use it because he was afraid of going to prison for the rest of his life.

Semeatu then changed his plan, he went straight inside the house and grabbed clothes that were inside another room and stacked them in a pile and poured gasoline on top of the pile and set fire to it. His plan was to hurt his girlfriend and her aunt for lying to him and using him.

The defendant further stated that after he started the fire, he left the residence and immediately called the TPS and informed them of what had happened.

He verbally stated that his intention was to burn down his girlfriend’s house.

Officers smelled a strong odor of alcohol on Semeatu. Bloodshot eyes were also evident on the defendant.

Semeatu admits that he drank 3 large beers before he committed the crime.

He was patted down for weapons and contraband and during the body search, officers found a glass pipe containing white crystalline substance inside his rear pocket. The white crystalline substance tested positive for meth.

When asked about the glass pipe, Semeatu told investigators that he found the glass pipe outside of his girlfriend’s house.

Based on the police investigation, the defendant has a mental health issue.

ENELIKO FETULI

A man who allegedly assaulted his nephew was arrested and charged. During his arrest, officers discovered drugs inside his pocket.

Aneliko Fetuli made his initial appearance in Court last month.

He is charged with one count of unlawful possession of meth, one count of abuse of a child, both felonies; along with one count of endangering the welfare of a child and one count of 3rd- degree assault, both class A misdemeanors.

Bail is set at $10,000.

THE CASE

On the afternoon of May 17, 2022, the TPS received a call from a young male stating that he had been physically assaulted by his uncle Ene at his residence in Futiga.

Ene was later identified as Eneliko Fetuli, the defendant in this matter. The caller also told police that his uncle is on drugs.

Police interviewed those involved in the matter in Futiga, including the victim, his father and a neighbor.

According to the victim’s statement to police, his uncle (defendant), his father and the neighbor started yelling and swearing while tossing food and plates inside the kitchen after his uncle was unsatisfied with the food the victim’s father had made.

The victim then said that his uncle (defendant) approached him and started to verbally and physically assault him by punching him in his face and pushing him. The victim blocked some of the punches by using his hands to cover his face but still got punched near his neck area.

The defendant then went into his room to grab a wooden baseball bat and verbally threatened to kill the victim. The victim then ran outside the house and saw the defendant walking towards the public road stating that when he came back, he was going to kill his nephew (victim).

Police interviewed the neighbor who saw the defendant physically assault the nephew (victim) and make unreasonable noises — and this has been an ongoing thing. He confirmed the victim’s account of his assault.

The victim refused medical assistance.

The investigators were told that the defendant had left the house a few minutes before they had arrived at the scene and was heading towards the public road.

Officers found the defendant sitting at the bus stop in Futiga. He was then placed in cuffs one hour after the incident and was taken to the TPS for further investigation.

He was patted down for weapons and any paraphernalia prior to his apprehension, and during the body search, a glass pipe containing a white crystalline substance was found inside his pants’ left pocket, that was tested later and was positive for meth.

The defendant was Mirandized and made a statement, admitting to assaulting his nephew out of anger and that the glass pipe containing meth belonged to him and he bought it from a drug dealer.

AMATAGA LUAFALE

A man accused of assaulting another man by striking his head with a metal object twice causing severe head injuries to the victim was arrested and is being charged. Samoa News reported on this matter in May of this year.

Amataga Luafale made his initial appearance in Court in May and is charged with one count of 2nd -degree assault, a class D felony, punishable by imprisonment for up to five years, a $5,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.

Bail is set at $10,000.

CASE SUMMARY

On Apr. 30, 2022 at about 9:24p.m, a man contacted police to report a man who assaulted him using a dangerous instrument.

Responding officers found the victim, sitting outside his house, bleeding from his head.

When questioned by officers, the victim told investigators that the incident stemmed from Luafale, the defendant, questioning his ancestry connection to the family, and assaulting him outside a store.

Footage from the store’s video surveillance system confirmed that the victim was struck from behind by Luafale two times using a metal object before he punched and kicked him.

The two female individuals who spoke with the victim before the assault are Luafale’s cousin and wife.

The victim was taken to a police substation to be treated by the EMS and for further investigation.

Officers were unable to locate the defendant at that time.

LEIFI LAMOSITELE

A 30-year-old man was arrested last month for allegedly assaulting a female by pushing her down and choking her.

Leifi Lamositele spend three nights in jail before he made his initial appearance in Court last month.

Lamositele is charged with one count of private peace disturbance and one count of 3rd- degree assault, both class A misdemeanors, punishable by a imprisonment of up to one year, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

Bail was set at $300, however during his initial appearance hearing, the court decided to release Lamositele on his own recognizance subject to several conditions.

Pretrial conference is set for July 20.

The government alleges that on May 20, 2022 at approximately night, the TPS received a phone call from a couple from Malaeimi requesting police assistance regarding an incident where a man allegedly assaulted a woman in front of their house.

Responding officers were briefed by the reporter regarding the incident, however, the suspect who was later identified as Leifi Lamositele had left the scene. Officers located the suspect at his house, where he allegedly admitted to the incident and apologized.

According to the victim’s statement, the incident happened when Lamositele took offense when she scolded four young kids who stay with him. An argument and scuffle ensued that led to Lamositele allegedly standing on top of the victim choking her, asking her if she knew who he was and asking her who she was.

The kids who were with the suspect jumped in and pulled Lamositele away and they left the scene. That’s when the victim informed the couple about the incident and the couple called the TPS for police assistance.