Drunk husband allegedly assaults wife for ignoring him

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On February 28, 2025, a victim of an alleged domestic disturbance contacted the Fagatogo Police Station (FPS) to report that her husband allegedly assaulted her.

Police officers arrested the suspect and he was later charged with:

Count 1: Private Peace Disturbance (DV), a class C misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to fifteen days, a fine of $300, or both; and,

Count 2: Assault in the Third Degree (DV), a class A misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to one year, a fine of $1,000, or both.

The defendant’s bail was set at $1,000.

According to the court affidavit, on Friday, Feb. 28th, at approximately 6:48 p.m., FPS received a call from a woman (later identified as the victim) regarding her husband (later identified as the suspect), who allegedly punched and choked her.

Police officers proceeded to serve the call.

Upon arrival at the scene at 7:03 p.m., officers observed a female standing and crying behind a yellow truck with an unknown male. The officers approached the woman and asked if she was the caller. She confirmed that she was, and identified herself as the victim. She also identified the unknown male individual as her “drunken husband” named Paulo Sanele.

The officers separated the suspect and the victim.

As the officers were interviewing the victim, they observed redness around her neck, a swollen left cheek bone, and scratches on her right arm. The victim was asked if she needed medical treatment but she refused.

The victim verbally stated that she was sleeping and out of nowhere, her husband came rushing into their room and scolded her for not doing her chores. The victim further stated she didn’t know someone was calling her because she was asleep. However, her husband got mad and punched her five times on her left cheek and she used a pillow to cover his punches.

Her husband then choked her with his hands but luckily her last scream alarmed the next door neighbor which was her husband’s aunt. The suspect’s aunt came rushing into their room and got the suspect away from her and that’s when she called the police for help. The victim gave her written statement later.

After the victim’s interview, the officers approached the suspect’s aunt and interviewed her. The witness refused to give her information and only verbally stated that this is not the first time this had happened.

Upon transporting the suspect, police officers detected a strong odor of alcohol emitted from his breath and clothing. The suspect also stated that he’s drunk and he got mad at his wife because she seemed to be ignoring and hiding something from him.

At the FPS, the suspect was booked and confined at the Tafuna Correctional Facility to await the next available sitting of the District Court.

The defendant is identified as a 26-year-old citizen of Samoa.