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Young man on probation enters plea in assault case

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ausage@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A young man from Tafuna with a long criminal history entered into a plea agreement with the government last week.

Lave Tupu, who is on probation, was initially charged with 4 misdemeanors including 2 counts of third degree assault, resisting arrest, and public peace disturbance.

However, under a plea agreement with the government, Tupu pled guilty to public peace disturbance and the remaining charges were dismissed.

With his guilty plea, Tupu admits that on May 29, 2020 in Tafuna, he disturbed the public peace, by being involved in a fight, during which he became loud and created fear to others.

The court sentenced Tupu to 6 months (180 days) probation.

According to court records, Tupu has been detained since his arrest and therefore has already served 121 days in prison.

The court then ordered that Tupu be released from the TCF, however he will remain at TCF, pending a hearing to revoke his probation in the High Court next week.

During court proceedings, Tupu 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 Tafuna area, requesting police assistance to a disturbance.

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

In 2016, the Court placed Tupu 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 in jail and remain a law abiding citizen.