Man allegedly assaulted over NFL football

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On November 28, 2025, a man called the Fagatogo Police Station (FPS) to report that his cousin had allegedly assaulted him after an argument regarding NFL football.

The suspect was later arrested and charged with:

Count 1: Public Peace Disturbance (DV), a class B misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine not more than $500, or both imprisonment; and,

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

The defendant was held without bail.

According to the court affidavit filed on December 1, 2025, in the District Court, a man (the victim) reported that his cousin, Andrew Peters (the suspect), had assaulted him in front of a store in Pago Pago, on Nov. 28th.

Police officers responded to the call and upon arrival at the scene, saw Peters walking towards his house and stopped him. The officers questioned him about the allegations.

He told the officers that “nothing happened between him and his cousin.” The suspect claimed that it was just a simple misunderstanding.

The victim arrived on the scene later, and both were transported to the station for further investigation.

At the station, the victim provided a written statement which stated that “he was hanging out with some friends” when Mr. Peter showed up drunk and started an argument about NFL football. The argument escalated, and the suspect punched him in the face and threatened to kill him and his family, after which Peters punched him twice and kicked him in the stomach twice. This was followed by the suspect choking him and threatening to cut his throat.

After the assault, the victim stated he left to go home, but Peter followed him home and continued to threaten to kill him and his family.

The suspect was Mirandized, in which he understood and agreed to make a statement.

Peters stated that he went to pick up his laundry, and that’s when the victim asked him about football players. He said that he didn’t know the names of the players, and the victim called him “stupid”. He got angry and told the victim that he’s not scared of him anymore. He reminded the victim about an incident from 2010 where the victim hit his head with a beer bottle. The suspect stated that the argument escalated, and he punched the victim, and the victim told him that “it wasn’t a hard punch”.

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

The affidavit also noted that during transportation of the suspect, he yelled profanities at the officers and threatened to beat up an officer when he was released from jail.

The defendant is identified as a 33-year-old U.S national.

[Editor’s Note: An affidavit is a written statement confirmed by oath or affirmation for use as evidence in court. It is not a court decision. Under local law, defendants are considered innocent until proven guilty by the court. ra]