Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — On August 4, 2025, a woman reported that a man had allegedly raped her 15-year-old niece.

The suspect was later charged with:

Count 1: Rape, a class B felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of not less than five years and not more than 15 years;

Count 2: Sodomy, a class B felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of not less than five years and not more than 15 years;

Count 3: Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, a class D felony punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to five years, a fine not to exceed $5,000, or both imprisonment and fine;

Count 4: Endangering the Welfare of a Child, a class A misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to one year, a fine not to exceed $1,000, or both.

The defendant was held without bail.

(Samoa News has withheld the names of those involved in this case due to a minor being involved.)

According to the court records, on Aug 4th, an officer was assigned to investigate a complaint by a woman regarding her 15-year-old cousin, who was allegedly having sexual intercourse with a person she met online.

As part of the investigation, authorities interviewed the victim and the reporter.

According to the victim, she met the suspect on Instagram on July 26, 2025. Later that night, they met outside of a store across from her home. On July 31, 2025, around midnight, they met for a second time. From there, they walked across the road to an abandoned lot where an abandoned vehicle was located. The victim explained that the car was not visible from the road, and a brick wall surrounded it.

She continued that once inside the vehicle, the suspect kissed her and performed sexual acts on her, twice. Afterwards, the victim and suspect walked around the neighborhood.

At around 3:00 a.m., the reporter found them walking on the dirt road and immediately took the victim home.

The reporter was also interviewed, and she informed the officers that she has power of attorney for the victim, who is a minor, while her parents are working off-island. The reporter explained that on July 31, 2025, she noticed that the minor was not in her bedroom. She then went out to look for her and found her walking around with the suspect on the road.

She took her home immediately and questioned her about the suspect and what happened. As a result, the reporter filed a report with the authorities regarding the matter in question.

The defendant is identified as a 23-year-old U.S national.