Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A man who is on probation for his involvement in a stealing and burglary case three years ago is back in court this week after being arrested by police for receiving stolen property.

Nassan Tupuola made his initial appearance before Acting Associate Justice Elvis P. Patea this past Tuesday.

He is charged with one count of receiving stolen property, a class D felony, punishable by terms of imprisonment of up to 5 years, a $5,000 fine, or both.

Bail is set at $5,000.

THE CASE

On Sept. 5, 2020 around 2:12p.m, a female contacted the Tafuna Police Substation (TPS) and reported that her phone was stolen and she had knowledge of a possible suspect.

Several police officers responded to the call and met up with the woman in front of a store in Nu’uuli.  Also in front of the story was Nassan Tupuola , the defendant in this case.

After receiving information from the woman regarding her stolen phone, the defendant, Tupuola caused a scene in front of the store. He was then apprehended and transported to the TPS for further investigation.

The woman stated that on Saturday morning, Sept.5, 2020 around 7:30 a.m, she discovered that an unknown person had come on her property, unlawfully entered her car and stolen her property, including her iPhone 6 Plus. She then went to Bluesky Communications (BSC) for assistance in tracking her phone.

While tracking her phone, the tracking device showed that her phone was still in the area (Tago area in Nu’uuli) and was moving toward the front of a store in Nu’uuli. The woman and the BSC employee left the BSC compound and headed towards the mentioned area. However, prior to reaching the area, the tracking device showed that her phone had stopped moving and it remained in front of the store.

The woman and the BSC employee arrived at the store and observed three male individuals sitting in front of the store. The pair parked their vehicle and waited to see if the device moved. The employee also told the woman that he would send a ringtone to the phone and see if it rings.

While doing so, the phone rang and immediately they saw one male individual reaching into this pocket and trying to bring out multiple items along with the phone. The woman got out of the car, approached the individual, who was later identified as the defendant, and asked him about the phone — but the defendant refused to answer.

She then asked the defendant to hand over the phone, to which the defendant replied that he bought the phone from another individual the night before. The woman then contacted police for assistance.

The defendant was informed of his constitutional rights at the TPS and waived his rights, later agreeing to make a statement.

According to Tupuola’s statement to police, on Sept. 5, 2020 about 2:30 a.m a guy by the name of INA and another individual came up to him and asked him if he wanted a iPhone for $60. He responded by saying that he only had $57 on him, that’s when the two individuals stated they were willing to take the money, so he bought the phone from them.

Tupuola further stated that an Apple iPad was sold to him three weeks ago for $20 by INA. The iPad had Department of Education (DOE) carved on the back with a serial number, Further investigation into the iPad is ongoing, but the iPad was seized as evidence.

The value of the items received by Tupuola was over $100.

Tupuola was then booked and confined at the Tafuna Correctional Facility (TCF) to await the next sitting of the court.

The government stated that from observing the defendant during the process, he seemed to not act normal —  being annoyed easily, facial area twitching and he kept moving back and forth the whole time. He did not appear to be under the influence of alcohol.