The police finally arrested a man this past Saturday that they have been seeking since February this year, after an arrest warrant was issued in his name. Arona Amituana’i was charged in February for a burglary and assault that allegedly occurred in November 2013.

When Amituana’i finally made his initial appearance in District Court this past Monday it was for two criminal cases. In the first case, he faces charges of burglary second degree, a class C felony, punishable with up to seven years in jail, a fine up to $5,000, a fine equal to twice the amount of gain from commission of the crime up to $20,000 — or both fine and jail time; assault second degree, a class D felony which carries jail terms up to five years and misdemeanor charges of third degree assault and private peace disturbance.

In the second case that allegedly occurred when they went to arrest him this past Saturday for the first case, Amituana’i, is charged with Public Peace Disturbance.

Court filings say that police received a call from an off duty police officer informing them that the defendant had been seen in Fagatogo, and that there was an outstanding arrest warrant in his name.

According to the government’s case, police were further told that the defendant was at his residence in Nu’uuli and when police arrived he was in a neighbor’s house. It’s alleged the police officers were allowed inside the house to apprehend Amituana’i and when they did, the defendant resisted.

“We then used the necessary force to take him down because he was resisting and at the same time shouting out loud profanity.  He was acting out-of-control and threatened the people who set him up to the police,” according to court filings.

It’s alleged that while police were trying to serve Amituana’i with the outstanding arrest warrant, the defendant voluntarily told the police that he had four guns at home.  It is also alleged that the defendant opened his cell phone and showed photos of himself holding guns.

ARREST WARRANT

According to the affidavit supporting the arrest warrant issued last February, it was on November 18, 2013 that a man went home to deliver some food for his wife who is bedridden.  She is cared for by a caregiver that the family had hired. After entering the house, the husband noticed that one of the rooms was locked.

The man told police he entered the room and found Amituana’i hiding behind a towel. It’s alleged the defendant came towards the man with a pocketknife and the man retaliated by kicking and punching the defendant.

Court filings say the man fought with the defendant and they ended up on the floor wrestling and the defendant allegedly choked the man at one point during the fight. Furthermore the man told police that when the defendant tried to stab him with the knife he managed “to land a few punches on the defendant.”

Court filings say the defendant ran to the window and jumped out through nine or ten louvers, breaking all of them. The man told police that he managed to punch the defendant in his stomach and then pulled him back into the house.  The defendant sustained cuts on his face and a piece of glass was sticking out of defendant’s left shoulder.

The victim received a knife wound on his left wrist, scratches on the right side of his neck, a cut on his right leg, a swollen left elbow, pain on his right elbow and soreness in his left shoulder, lower back and neck, say court filings.

According to the wife’s caregiver, the defendant had come banging on the front door, but the caregiver refused to open the door.  The defendant then kicked the door in, damaging the latch and side panel of the door.

The caregiver told police the defendant had forced his way into the house and allegedly pulled the caregiver’s hair and slapped her several times while threatening her.  When the husband arrived home, the defendant ran and hid in one of the rooms.

According to police records, the defendant had been previously ordered to stay away from the wife’s caregiver.

 In the matter where he was ordered to stay from the girl, he had also been ordered to serve 12 months in jail as part of a five-year probation. The defendant had already served his 12 months in jail.

Samoa News notes the defendant— prior to being arrested for this recent case— had served jail time for a domestic violence case involving his live in girlfriend (who is the caregiver in this recent case).