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Sex abuse charges lodged after Christmas Day incident

A man arrested on Christmas day is charged with sexual abuse after allegations were lodged that he touched a young man inappropriately. Sivai Te’o was arraigned in the High Court last week, where he denied the charges against him.

 

According to the government’s case, the incident came to light when a woman contacted police that the defendant had touched her son in a sexual manner.

 

The incident is alleged to have occurred in Amaluia on December 25 and Police Officer Time Loia was assigned to investigate this matter.

 

It’s alleged that on Christmas Day, after police responded to a call from the boy’s mother, officers were unable to locate Te’o right away.

 

Court filings say police spoke to the 15-year old boy (who is the complaining witness in the case) and he stated that he heard a knock at a the front door and when he opened it was the defendant came asking for his mom. The boy told Te’o his mom was in the shower. The government further claims that when the boy called out his mom’s name, the defendant told him to be quiet and “to come close and do not call her anymore.”

 

The boy said he stepped closer thinking that Te’o would tell him what to tell his mother, however Te’o grabbed him on his private parts. The boy pushed Te’o away and told him to leave the house.

 

The boy went into the kitchen and then came back into the living where the defendant was still sitting and it’s alleged Te’o told the boy that they should go into another room so he could perform oral sex on him. “Te’o at the same time made a gesture with his tongue while looking” at the boy’s private parts, the police report reads.

 

The boy told his mother about what had happened and when the mother approached the defendant about the allegations Te’o denied doing anything and said he came over to wish the woman Merry Christmas. The boy further told police when he heard what Te’o was telling his mother he got upset because Te’o was lying and the he went outside and punched Te’o in the face.

 

Police spoke to the defendant who confirmed that he did go over to the victim’s house and hugged the boy and wished him Happy holidays and maybe that’s why the boy got upset and punched him.

 

Court filings say that Te’o further told police he was drunk when he went to the victim’s house.

 

Pretrial conference for the defendant is scheduled for next month. The Public Defender’s officer represents Te’o while prosecuting is Assistant Attorney General Tiffany Oldsfield.