Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On December 25, 2024, a man was arrested and charged with unlawfully entering the Veterans Memorial Stadium and burglarizing the Department of Education (DOE) Athletes building after authorities investigated the incident.

The defendant was arrested and charged with:

Count 1: Burglary in the First Degree, a class B felony punishable by a term of imprisonment not less than 5 years and not to exceed 15 years, a fine or both;

Count 2: Stealing, a class C felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 7vyears, a fine of not more than $5,000, or an amount equal to twice the amount of gain from the commission of the crime up to a maximum of $20,000, or both imprisonment and fine;

Count 3: Trespass, a class B misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine of $500, or both; and,

Count 4: Property Damage in the Third Degree, a class B misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine of $500, or both.

The defendant’s bail was set at $30,000.

According to the court affidavit, on Dec. 25th, at approximately 8:40 p.m., a male of Polynesian descent identified as Mr. Fale, Ta’ata’ai entered the Veterans Memorial Stadium and broke into the DOE Athletes office on the north east side of the stadium compound.

Mr. Fale was observed on closed circuit video footage (CCTV) walking back and forth in an attempt to possibly locate a point of entry into the building, Authorities viewed the footage and recognized the suspect from prior incidents.

Unable to get into the office building, Fale was seen walking to the rear of the building and throwing a coconut sized rock through the office window, before unlawfully entering and remaining inside the office.

He is further observed on CCTV footage forcing his way into the building/ office through the window and during the process sustaining injuries to his left hand from the shattered glass fragments.

And, when the suspect got inside the building, he proceeded to vandalize and ransack the file cabinets and office desks. The suspect is seen coming across two (2) Apple Macbook Pro laptops, each estimated at a value of $1,799.00, which he unwrapped and took with him. There were red smears of what appeared to be blood all over the laptop boxes and blood drop trails throughout the office.

Upon entering the Deputy Director’s office, Fale opened a file cabinet which stored five (5) silver Surface Pro Laptops, each with an estimated value of $2,500.00. Fale stole four (4) of the Surface Pro laptops along with 10 new volleyball nets, each estimated at $45.00 a piece.

On Dec. 28th, Fale was brought into the TPS and was informed that he was not under arrest and was free to leave at any time. The officers briefed him on the reason he was brought to the station and the suspect stated that he was willing to make a statement.

The suspect was later Mirandized and agreed to provide a verbal and written statement.

Fale was questioned of his whereabouts on Christmas night from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. to which he stated that he was at his sister’s house behind the Veterans Memorial Stadium in Petesa. The officers asked if he was ever around the DOE’s Athlete’s building inside the stadium and he responded, “no”.

The officers then showed the suspect the CCTV footage of him inside the office building to which startled, he said, “I think that’s me”  — with a smirk on his face, according to the affidavit.

The suspect said he used his girlfriend as a lookout whilst he entered the building, he also stated that he grabbed a rock and used it to break the office window.

The suspect was also asked about the blood drops throughout the office building to which he stated that he had cut his left hand (palm area) when he reached in through the window to unhook the window latch. Fale had a noticeable injury on his left hand’s palm with a wound and dried blood.

The suspect also explained that once he was inside the building he went through the file cabinets and he came across four (4) silver Surface Pro Laptops, and two (2) MacBook Pro laptops, which he took.

The officers asked where he took what he had stolen, and he stated that he sold them to his friends for $40.00 each, and when questioned about the location of each of the laptops he directed the officers to different locations.

However,  two of the Surface Pros are still unaccounted for, along with the Mac Book Pros and the volleyball nets. The total value of the items that were stolen from the DOE Athletic’s office are said to be $14,048.00.

It was also noted that the suspect had been involved in several break-ins within the Tafuna area. This individual is also known for walking the streets at odd hours of the night conducting recon before committing to the action of breaking and entering.

The affidavit states that Fale is a drifter and moves from place to place within the Tafuna area.

The defendant is identified as a 29-year-old U.S National.