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Repeat offender is back in jail, following a PPD in Tafuna

American Samoa District Court building
ausage@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA —  A man with an outstanding arrest warrant was taken into custody last week after police picked him up for a public peace disturbance matter in Tafuna.

Isitolo Kolia Jr, 45, made his initial appearance in court yesterday morning. Prosecuting the case is Assistant Attorney General Jason Mitchell, while Assistant Public Defender Bob Stuart is representing the defendant, who has a previous assault conviction from  2013.

Kolia Jr is charged with second degree assault and unlawful possession of marijuana, both felonies; and 2 misdemeanors:public peace disturbance and third degree assault.

Bail is set at $5,000 and a preliminary hearing is Oct. 2nd at 10:30a.m.

THE CASE

Cops responded to a public peace disturbance case in Tafuna, after a young woman contacted police for assistance, regarding an intoxicated man yelling profanities at her husband.

Police arrived and were able to speak to the caller, who told them that it was around 5:21p.m when she called her husband to pick her up, along with their children, in front of P&J Family Store. A few moments later, her husband showed up and parked on the front side of the store’s parking lot.

As her husband was about to exit his vehicle, a blue truck pulled over and scratched the back side of their vehicle. Her husband exited his vehicle and walked over to speak to the driver of the blue truck.

As her husband was approaching the driver, a man who was later identified as the defendant exited the driver’s side of the blue truck, walked towards her husband, and immediately punched him in the face and yelled, “It’s all your fault!”

According to the witness, her husband did not throw any punches; instead, he stood up and ran back to where his vehicle was parked, while Kolia Jr followed him. Several bystanders stopped Kolia Jr  from striking the victim again.

Immediately afterwards, Kolia Jr jumped in his vehicle and tried to leave the scene. However, two other vehicles pulled in and blocked his vehicle, in an effort to stop him from fleeing the scene.

Cops were able to apprehend Kolia Jr  from inside his truck, and transported him to the Tafuna Substation for questioning. When asked by police, Kolia Jr admitted that he assaulted the victim for blocking his way to the parking lot. He said the accident was the victim’s fault.

It was revealed during Kolia Jr’s interview with police that he has an outstanding arrest warrant from another assault case, where he is alleged to have assaulted a man by using a rock to strike his head.

THE OUTSTANDING WARRANT

On March 21, 2018, a woman contacted the Tafuna Substation for help, after her 42-year-old brother was assaulted by a man, who worked for a  construction company that was building their neighbor’s new home.

When police arrived, the woman told them that her brother had just arrived from Samoa two months earlier, and on the day of the alleged incident, her brother went to the store while Kolia Jr and other men were having a drinking session under a tree not far from the store.

Kolia Jr is believed to have called out to the victim if he can buy one beer for him. The victim said the money didn’t belong to him, it was his sister’s.

That’s when Kolia Jr said, “Okay, forget about the money, but bring your sister for me.” The victim became angry and allegedly yelled out profane words to Kolia Jr and told him to stop disrespecting his sister before he strikes him with a machete.

While the victim was standing in front of the store, Kolia Jr snuck over and hit him on the back of the head with a rock, causing the defendant to fall down. While the victim was on the ground, Kolia Jr allegedly kicked his back twice before leaving the scene.

After police obtained a warrant from the court to arrest Kolia Jr, he was nowhere to be found. The owner of the construction company he worked for told police he hadn’t heard from Kolia Jr since the alleged incident.

A video footage of the incident recorded by the store’s surveillance camera was obtained by police, and it confirmed Kolia Jr’s involvement.

2013 CONVICTION

In Oct. 21, 2013, Kolia Jr was sentenced to 20 months detention at the Territorial Correctional Facility (TCF), as a condition of his 5-year probation sentence, after pleading guilty to the amended charge, under a plea agreement with the government.

The government says Kolia Jr assaulted a man during a drinking session by stabbing him with a knife, causing severe injuries to the victim’s back and shoulder.