Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man convicted of unlawful possession of meth and weed will have to serve 40 months at the Territorial Correctional Facility (TCF) as a condition of his 5-year probation term.

Pierce Suapilimai appeared before Associate Justice Fiti Sunia yesterday morning for sentencing.

Suapilimai, who has been in custody since his arrest last year, unable to post a $50,000 surety bond, was initially charged in two separate cases.

In one case, he was charged with unlawful possession of meth with the intent to distribute; unlawful possession of meth; and unlawful possession of marijuana, all felonies, and a misdemeanor charge of unlawful possession of a firearm.

But under a plea agreement with the government, accepted by the court, Suapilimai pled guilty to unlawful possession of meth with the intent to distribute; and the amended count of unlawful possession marijuana.

Suapilimai admits that on Sept. 10, 2017 he had on him, meth and marijuana when police searched a house where he was hanging out. The search netted a bag of marijuana; two hand rolled marijuana joints; cash; a firearm; numerous paraphernalia and straws that contained meth; and a notebook detailing the money he received from selling drugs.

In another case, Suapilimai was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, and stealing — both felonies. Under a plea agreement with the government, he pled guilty to the amended count of unlawful possession of marijuana. the stealing charge was dismissed.

Suapilimai admits that on Apr. 16, 2018 he had on him two marijuana joints.

Defense attorney Ryan Anderson asked the court to sentence his client to probation without any further period of detention. He said Suapilimai has been in custody for over 16 months, and he takes full responsibility for what he did. He said Suapilimai told police everything regarding the small operation he was involved with.

He said his client was involved in a “small time operation”.

“This is not an excuse, Your Honor,” Anderson said. “My client has admitted to the court that he sold some marijuana to make some money for himself.”

Anderson asked the court to release his client so he can look for a job and be a productive member of the community. He said Suapilimai’s family really needs him to care for his parents, especially in transporting his mother to her medical check ups and appointments at the hospital.

Prosecutor Christy Dunn disagreed, saying the defendant’s drug operation was bigger than what his attorney was alluding. She said the evidence seized by police during the raid proves that Suapilimai was involved in one of the biggest drug operations on island.

Dunn then asked the court to sentence the defendant to probation, under the condition that he serve a full 20 months at the TCF.

According to the court, for the first case, the evidence proves that Suapilimai was involved in distributing drugs to other people.

And, while released on bond, Suapilimai was arrested again after cops found drugs on him during a traffic stop.

“There is no such thing as a small time dealer. A dealer is a dealer — whether it’s small or big,” Sunia said, adding that these types of operations only work when there are users, because the dealer needs users to sell products to, and once the operation grows, the dealer will need more sellers to sell the products.

“So, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a small time dealer or big time dealer, the bottom line is, once you see your operations grow, that means there are more users; so, then you need more sellers. That’s why the Fono said you can go to prison for up to 20 years for this type of offense,” Sunia said.

“There is nothing small about selling drugs to people in the territory. So don’t minimize the seriousness of this offense,” he continued.

For unlawful possession of meth with the intent to distribute, Suapilimai was sentenced to 10 years and a $5,000 fine.

Execution of sentence is suspended and Suapilimai is placed on probation for 5 years under the condition that he serve 40 months at the TCF and pay a $5,000 fine.

For unlawful possession of marijuana, Suapilimai got 5 years. Execution of sentence is suspended and he is placed on probation for 5 years under the condition that he serve 20 months.

For unlawful possession of marijuana in the second case, Suapilimai was sentenced to 5 years. Execution of sentence is suspended and he is placed on probation for 5 years under the condition that he serve  20 months.

Probation and jail terms are to run concurrently. This means Suapilimai will only serve 40 months (credited the 16 months he already served), as a condition of a 5-year probation term.

Suapilimai is to remain alcohol and drug free, and he is subject to random testing.

Sunia encouraged Suapilimai to change his life. “If you don’t like our advice, that’s your choice. If you come back before us in the future, there will be no second chance for you.”