Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Tafuna Police Substation received a call from a woman on October 2, 2023, at 12 noon regarding her husband, Levini Tavae, who she claims assaulted her when he threw his personal cell phone at her, and struck her in the eye. In addition to that the woman said, Tavae had also threatened to kill her the previous night, which prompted her to contact the police for assistance. 

Officers were dispatched to Nu’uuli and upon arriving at the residence they found the woman hiding at her neighbor’s house. Officers interviewed the woman, and she claims that the suspect approached her at their home with anger, so she left in fear that he would hurt her. 

The woman also told officers that her husband left the scene in his private vehicle. The victim was transported to the TPS for further investigation, and on the way there, she observed the suspect’s vehicle in Nu’uuli, at the intersection heading towards Tago road. 

The vehicle, which was driven by Tavae, was pulled over by officers and he was told to proceed to the TPS for further investigation into the issue.

Once at the police station, the victim stated that it all started on Sunday, October 1, 2023. She told officers that on that day she was at work and that at 7 PM, her husband came to her workplace and demanded that she get off work early. 

He allegedly yelled at her to come out and told her that he would force her if she didn’t come out. The victim states she then grabbed her bags and got in the car in fear that he might cause a scene at her workplace. 

The victim said that when they arrived home, the suspect asked her again why she didn’t get off early, and she never replied back. That is allegedly what angered him and led him to make threatening remarks that he would kill her and do to her what had been done to the woman who was killed in Mapusaga. That’s when the suspect allegedly grabbed his cell phone and threw it at her.

According to the report, the victim was struck above her right eye and after hitting her with his cell phone, the suspect then told the victim to get in the car, where he drove them to his workplace. When they got there, the suspect told her to get out of the car and he started swearing at her and told her he didn’t want to be with her anymore. The suspect also slapped the victim on the right side of the face while at his workplace.

The victim further told officers that on October 2, she was getting ready for work when her husband told her to stay home. The victim says she told him off, and that is when the suspect allegedly attempted to assault her again, which resulted in her seeking safety at her neighbor’s house and using the neighbor’s phone to contact the police. 

On October 2, 2023, Tavae was Mirandized, and he acknowledged that understood his rights and opted to provide an explanation for his involvement in the situation. 

According to Tavae, he was angry with his wife because she used their extended families’ money without his knowledge. He also claims that he did not throw his cell phone at his wife or slap her at his workplace. Tavae was then booked and processed for a 48 hour confinement at the Tafuna Correctional Facility (TCF).

He is being charged with 7 counts — two counts of public peace disturbance, two counts of private peace disturbance, and three counts of assault in the first degree.

His bail is set at $1,000.