Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man was arrested by police last Saturday night for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend. The defendant made his initial appearance at the District Court this week where he denied the single charge of 3rd degree assault against him. He was then released on his own recognizance to await his pretrial conference next month.

The government claims that around 10:40p.m on Saturday, July 21, 2018, the Tafuna Police Station received a phone call from a woman who stated that she was allegedly assaulted by her boyfriend. The boyfriend was later identified as the defendant in this case.

Several police officers responded to the call and were able to meet up with the alleged victim in this case, who explained to police officers what happened.

The victim told police that she was having a hard time breathing and she also admitted that there was a pain on the front of her head. The victim further told police that she was allegedly beaten up by her boyfriend after they exchanged heated remarks regarding who was going to cook the bananas for their evening meal.

The victim told police that her boyfriend used a cup to punch her on the left side of her head, while she was carrying their two-year-old son. The defendant allegedly continued to beat the victim with his hands. He allegedly fled the scene when he heard that his girlfriend had notified police about the alleged incident.

The victim also told police that she lives in fear that her boyfriend would show up again and do something worse to her.

Police apprehended the defendant at a nearby residence and he was placed in a police unit and brought to the police station for further investigation.