Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On April 25, 2025, a concerned father contacted the Leone Police Substation (LPS) in regards to his son who was allegedly assaulted.

The defendant was later apprehended and charged with:

Count 1: Public Peace Disturbance, a class B misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to six months, a fine of $500, or both; and,

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

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

According to the court records, on Apr. 25th, around 4:51 p.m., a father (reporter) called the LPS to report that his son was allegedly attacked by Jeremiah Mapusga (suspect).

Authorities responded to the call and when they arrived at the scene, they met up with the reporter and his son (victim). The victim briefly explained what happened, and responding officers radioed for back up and requested to pick up the suspect from his residence. At the same time, the victim was transported to the police station to be treated for his injuries and for further investigation.

According to the victim’s statement, he was walking to the Western Union when he was approached by the suspect. The suspect demanded that he take off his shirt but he told him “no” and continued walking. However, on his way back, the suspect approached him again and told him to take off his shirt for the second time. The suspect then grabbed him and attempted to dig into his pants pockets for the money he received from Western Union. The victim added that the suspect also punched him on his left ear before he was able to get away from him.

The victim was treated at the station and refused to be transported to the hospital for further treatments. The victim sustained a cut behind his left ear, and his ear was bleeding from within.

Upon arrival at the LPS, Mapusaga was Mirandized to which he said he understood and agreed to make a statement.

Mapusaga claimed that he saw the victim walking towards Puapua and he approached him because he wanted to talk to him about something that was hurting him. He also admitted that he attempted to assault the victim but he took off.

The suspect then claimed that he and the victim settled their differences and the victim’s mother was okay with him.

Jeremiah Mapusaga was booked and later transported to the Tafuna Correctional Facility to be confined to await the next available sitting of the District Court.

The defendant is identified as a 27-year-old U.S National.