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Sex case dismissed after girl testifies incidents never happened

Translated by Samoa News staff

Because the government couldn’t prove its case following testimony by the victim, the High Court has dismissed felony charges against a man who was accused of twice sexually abusing his girlfriend’s daughter — the alleged victim.

Mamona Unasa was charged with one count each of sodomy and deviate sexual assault and two counts of sexual abuse in the first degree — all felony crimes. His jury trial began Tuesday with opening arguments by the government.

Among the government witnesses was the victim, who was 15-years-old at the time the alleged sexual abuse occurred — last year December and February of this year. And the alleged crimes occurred while Unasa was living in the home of his girlfriend.

The victim, now 16, took the witness stand late Wednesday afternoon after she was sworn — to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.

Assistant attorney general Jerard Murphy asked the victim if the accused had touched her private parts and the victim responded “no” and that there was never a time that the defendant touched her in a sexual manner or her private parts.

With the victim’s testimony, Murphy verbally moved to dismiss the case, as the government couldn’t prove it at that point. The court immediately granted the motion.

In his opening statement when the jury trial began Tuesday morning, Murphy argued that the defendant had touched the victim’s private parts and in a sexual manner.

And before the trial got underway, Samoa News observed Unasa talking with his attorney, assistant public defender Michael White for a long time, and was overheard saying that he rejects claims that he had sexual contact with the victim and he also claimed he’s innocent.

On Wednesday, before the victim took the witness stand in the afternoon, the government first questioned police officers that investigated the case in the morning. Officers testified that the defendant admitted to the crimes he was charged with and the defendant also signed a written statement making the same admission.

The defense went after the police officers saying that none of them were present when the alleged criminal acts were committed and that testimonies by police as well as their report are based on hearsay from the victim.

However, Murphy countered that it was the victim who confirmed to police what happened to her and that even the defendant made the same admission through his signed written statement, which the government had planned to present as part of its evidence in the case.

With the case being dismissed by the court, Unasa was released yesterday, Thursday morning.

 

(Original Samoan stories in Lali section of today and yesterday’s Samoa News edition.)