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Overstayer who struck a 16-yr-old boy with a tree branch is arrested and charged

American Samoa District Court building

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Bail of $5,000 has been set for a man accused of hitting a high school student on the head with a tree branch.

Teofilo Kuka made his initial appearance in District Court this past Monday, April 18th. He is charged with second degree assault, a felony punishable by a jail term of up to 5 years, a fine of up to $5,000 or both.

According to the criminal complaint, police got a call last Tuesday, Apr. 2, from a 15-year-old boy, claiming that his brother was assaulted by an older male at a store between Sogi and Vailoa. When investigators arrived, they observed a large crowd of Leone HS students on the road in front of the store.

Police were directed to where the 16-year-old victim was sitting. The boy had "blood coming from the back of his head," according to the court affidavit. Another LHS student was holding a piece of cloth on the wound to control the bleeding.

EMS was contacted for assistance. The boy was transported to the LBJ Medical Center for treatment.

Police were informed that the assailant was a young man named Teofilo, and he lived behind the store. Police discovered that Teofilo is the son-in-law of a DPS employee who was contacted for assistance in handing him over.

Later that night, Teofilo, 21, walked into the DPS Leone substation where he allegedly confessed to striking the victim on the head with a branch of the Talie tree.

According to the victim, Teofilo struck him twice. Once in the left arm and again on the back of the head. The blow to the head, according to a witness, caused the victim to "black out".

According to his medical records, the victim sustained a 3-4cm laceration on the back of his head that required 12 staples. An x-ray revealed no serious issues, according to court documents.

During court proceedings, an Immigration officer revealed that Teofilo's ID expired nearly three years ago, back in June 2016.

A preliminary examination is set for Thursday, April 18th at 2:30 p.m.

Judge Pro Tem Gwen Tauiliili-Langkilde has also ordered that Teofilo's sponsor be present that day, on an Order to Show Cause (OSC) to explain Teofilo's immigration status and tell the court why he's been here so long with expired documents.