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Young man with long PPD rap sheet accepts plea agreement

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ausage@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A young man from Tafeta with a long criminal history entered into a plea agreement with the government last week during court proceedings before District Court Judge Elvis P. Patea.

Mikaele Filisi, who is on probation, was initially charged with 4 misdemeanors including 2 counts of third degree assault, resisting arrest, and public peace disturbance (PPD).

However, under a plea agreement, Filisi pled guilty to PPD and the remaining charges were dismissed.

With his guilty plea, Filisi admits that on July 29, 2019 in Tafeta, he was involved in a fight, during which he became loud and created fear in others.

Judge Patea sentenced Filisi to 6 months (180 days) probation.

According to court records, Filisi has been detained since his arrest and therefore has already served 152 days in prison.

The court had ordered that Filisi be released from the TCF but he will remain there, pending a hearing to revoke his probation in the High Court Friday at 9 a.m.

During court proceedings, Filisi apologized for what he did, saying he is remorseful and that he has learned his lesson. He also apologized to his mother and family, especially those who were affected by his actions.

The government's case states that on the day of the incident, police responded to a call from someone in the Tafeta area, requesting police assistance to a disturbance.

When cops arrived, an unknown male who was later identified as Filisi, yelled profanities at the police and asked them to leave the area.

In 2016, the High Court placed Filisi on probation for five years, after he was convicted of felony driving and resisting arrest. As a condition of his probation, he was ordered to serve 20 months at the TCF and remain a law abiding citizen.