Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man appeared in the District Court yesterday on charges of sexual abuse in the first degree; false imprisonment; endangering the welfare of a child and assault in the third degree.

According to the government’s case, police received a complaint last month over claims that Faapepele Fulutusi touched a 13-year old girl inappropriately and held her against her will.

Fulutusi is the nephew of the victim’s stepfather.

It’s alleged the victim went to her step-grandmother’s house looking for her uncle and saw the defendant there by himself.

The criminal affidavit states that Fulutusi, pulled her from the back and rubbed against her inappropriately.

“She pushed him away and told him to stop, they’re cousins.

“Faapepele refused and grabbed her hands forcing” them to touch him inappropriately. She stopped him and he started touching her inappropriately in the front of her body.

“He said to her, only we will know, nobody has to know,” court records say.

He then grabbed her which made the victim uncomfortable, “so she ran outside and told her mother; that’s when the matter was reported to the police.”

According to the government’s case, when police interviewed the suspect, he verbally admitted to all the things that the victim stated.