Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man accused of assaulting another man by striking his head with a metal object twice was arrested and is being charged.

Aokuso Luafa made his initial appearance in Court last week.

He is charged with one count of 2nd degree assault, a class D felony, punishable by imprisonment for up to five years, a $5,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.

Bail is set at $5,000.

THE CASE

On Feb. 22, 2021 at about 10:24p.m, a man contacted Fagatogo Headquarters to report a man who assaulted him using a dangerous instrument.

Several police officers responded to the call and were able to meet up with the reporter/victim in this case. Officers arrived and observed the victim sitting outside his house. The victim was bleeding from his head.

When questioned by officers, the victim stated that he went shopping and while he was in the store doing he heard two female individuals outside.  It turned out to be the defendant’s wife telling another female individual that he (victim) looks like a person that is not related to them.

Later on he came outside of the store and smoked a cigarette, when all of a sudden the female individual who spoke with the defendant’s wife came up to him and said, “You act like shit but you don’t belong here” and then the victim started to argue with the female individual and when he (victim) turned his back he was blindsided by the defendant.

The government alleges that the defendant punched the victim and struck him two times on the head with a metal construction tool. The two female individuals who spoke with the victim before the assault are the defendant’s cousin and wife.

The victim was later escorted inside a police unit and transported to Leone Substation to be treated by the EMS and for further investigations. Officers went to the defendant’s residence to locate him and his wife. The defendant was not at his house, he had gone to a female cousin’s house in Vailoa.

Officers went to Vailoa looking for the defendant but he was not at his female cousin’s house at the time.

Officers obtained footage from the store video surveillance system, which confirmed that the victim was struck from behind by the defendant two times using a metal object before he punched and kicked him.