Suspect in alleged assault still at large

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On January 24, 2025, Tafuna Police Substation (TPS) received a call from a concerned resident reporting a male individual who allegedly assaulted another male individual with a machete.

The suspect fled the scene but he was later charged with:

Count 1: Assault in the First Degree, a class A felony if committed by means of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, to wit: a machete, punishable by a term of imprisonment of at least 10 years; and,

Count 2: Public Peace Disturbance, a class B misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment of six months, a fine of $500, or both.

There was no set bail for the defendant.

According to the court affidavit, on Jan. 24th, at about 11:20 a.m., TPS received a distress call from a resident who reported that an injured victim was allegedly struck by an unknown male using a machete.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) was contacted while the police officers responded to the call.

Upon arrival at the scene at about 11:32 a.m., the victim was placed into the EMS unit and transported to the LBJ Hospital for further treatment.

The suspect was reported to have fled the scene and the officers gathered information and interviewed the witnesses of the said incident.

The suspect was later identified as Oma Mauigoa.

Police officers canvassed the area to look for him but he was nowhere to be found.

At about 12:15 p.m on the same day, the officers followed up on the victim at the LBJ Hospital and took photos of his injuries and interviewed him about the said incident.

According to one of the EMT’s who transported the victim to the hospital, the victim suffered about 4 to 5 inches laceration to the back of his head and a minor cut on his left middle finger. The victim was treated at the ER and later discharged in the evening after receiving stitches.

The officers were able to interview victim #2/ witness, near the scene, where he stated that he and his friend (victim) were walking on the dirt road heading to the store next to the MJ Audio Wash shop. They were heading to the store to buy sodas and the suspect came out of nowhere with a wheelbarrow and stopped them at the back of the store.

The suspect then challenged the victim to a fist fight. The victim #2 stated he stepped back while victim #1 and the suspect exchanged words.

A few moments later, the suspect punched victim #1 in the face and they ended up scuffling for a few seconds. Victim #2 claimed he jumped in to stop them and the suspect grabbed a machete from the wheelbarrow and struck the victim’s head with it.

After the suspect struck the victim’s head, the suspect chased him (Victim #2) with the machete towards the road and he ended up at the MJ Audio Car Wash shop. He then yelled for help to the boys who worked at the car wash and they were able to chase the suspect towards the Faleniu area.

Another witness was also interviewed and he stated that he was at the MJ Audio Car Wash when the two victims went to the store. About 10 minutes later, he saw one of the victims running back towards the shop yelling for help while being chased down by the suspect with a machete in the his hand.

His co-workers chased down the suspect towards the village of Faleniu while he went to the road where the victims were. As he approached the dirt road, he saw victim #1 running towards him while holding his head in pain and he appeared to have lost a great amount of blood.

He helped the victim get to the car wash shop to wait for the EMS and police to arrive.

Victim #1 was also interviewed, and he described the incident the same as his friend, victim #2 had, including that victim #2 separated them, and he was struck on the head with a machete.

He stated that he used his left arm to protect and cover his head when the suspect struck him with the machete. However, the machete caused a large cut on his head and a minor cut on his left middle finger. He further noted that he lost a great amount of blood and was in pain from his injuries.

At the time of the incident, the suspect was still at large.

Both victims and witness stated that the suspect is often seen walking on the road where the incident happened and that he seemed very aggressive on the day of the incident.

They also stated that the suspect seemed to be often under the influence of drugs.

The suspect is identified as a 35-year-old U.S National.