Court threatens man from Samoa with deportation — and then relents

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — During the sentencing of a man from Samoa convicted of violating local drug laws, the court told him that the only option for the court to deal with foreigners who come into American Samoa and violate territorial drug laws is to send them back to their countries, in order for the government to save local resources.

Olataga Siliva is a citizen of Samoa who was unable to post a $10,000 bond.

He was initially charged with one count of unlawful possession of methamphetamine (meth), an unclassified felony that carries a jail term between 5-10 years, and a fine between $5,000- $20,000 or both.

But under a plea agreement with the government, accepted by the court, Siliva pled guilty to the amended charge of unlawful possession of meth, a class D felony, punishable by imprisonment of up to 5 years, a fine up to $5,000 or both.

Siliva admits that on Jan. 21, 2021, he unlawful possessed a glass pipe containing meth. Siliva apologized to the court, the American Samoa Government, and his family.

He requested a second chance to return home to care for his elderly mother-in-law, and also his wife and 4 young children.

“… Please give me a chance to change my life and be a better person,” he said, promising to “never deal with drugs anymore,” as well as to using the remaining days of his life wisely and “to do good things for my family and for the community.”

“I don’t want to go back to the dark days of my life. I want to go home and redeem myself,” Siliva told the court.

According to Siliva’s statement to the court, everything was good with his life ever since he came to American Samoa over 20 years ago to look for a better life. However, his life changed after he started hanging out with wrong friends who introduced him to meth and marijuana.

He stated that there were times he made wrong choices by using all of the money he had to buy drugs and alcohol, not only for him but for his friends and other people.

“I learned my lesson from the 12 months that I spent behind bars and now I realize that violating the laws of the land comes with consequences in life,” Siliva said.

His defense attorney asked the court to uphold Probation’s recommendation for a probated sentence. He said that after spending over 12 months behind bars, Siliva has realized that prison is not a good place for him and he needs to move on with his life. He will also attend and complete drug counseling.

He informed the court that Siliva’s immigration status is current and he was employed before he was arrested. He said his client has strong ties in the territory — not only was his wife born in American Samoa, his four children were also born here.

The government’s attorney supported the defense attorney’s argument, saying the government believes the defendant is a suitable candidate for a probated sentence, and the court will manage his probation, giving him time to change his life and address his drug problem.

The court stated that according to Probation, Siilva is a citizen of Samoa who has been in the territory for a long time.

“In cases like this, the only option for the court to deal with foreigners who come into American Samoa and violate local drug laws is to send them back to their countries, in order for our government to save local resources,” the court said, adding that “the court will hold off with our deportation authority for this case — at this time.”

Siliva was sentenced to 5 years in jail and a $5,000 fine.

Execution of the sentence was suspended, and he was placed on 5 years of probation on the condition that he serve 20 months at the TCF and remain alcohol and drug free.

All but 12 months of the detention was stayed until further order of the court. He has been in custody for over 12 months. Siliva was released from custody after he was sentenced last week.

He is ordered to pay a fine of $3,000 and attend and complete a drug counseling program.

RECAP OF THE FACTS

According to the court, the defendant was initially arrested Nov. 15, 2020 when police discovered a small quantity of meth on him. Police had arrested Siliva for a public peace disturbance (PPD), and that’s what triggered a search of the defendant.

On Nov. 17, 2020, Siliva was released from confinement — with conditions — after he posted a $3,000 bond.

Less than 2 months later in January of 2021, Siliva was arrested for another PPD in Nu’uuli, after he and another male were involved in a fight in front of a store.

Eye-witnesses told police that it was Siliva who started the fight after he took the money belonging to another male. The male told Siliva to give back his money but Siliva refused. The male punched Siliva and a fight started.

Both Siliva and the male individual were arrested and taken into custody.

Siliva was convicted in District Court for PPD and was sentenced to 85 days in jail.

He appeared in High Court for a Status Hearing after his initial appearance in District Court for his new case. During that hearing, the court did not revoke his release on bond; instead, it increased his bond from $3,000 to $10,000, cash only.

Siliva had been in custody since then, unable to post the additional bond amount.