Witness in unresolved hit and run case charged for defamation

By LAGI KERESOMA/

Apia, Samoa – 30 January 2024: Police have charged a witness, Samuelu Su’a (Sam) for defamation in relation to the unresolved hit and run case at Vaitele in April 2021.

Samuelu and two women were detained by police for questioning last Friday and one of the women has been released and Sam is still under police custody to appear in court 20 February.

The Police Commissioner, Auapaau Logoitino Filipo told the media that the two women are charged with the obstruction of justice and Samuelu for defamation based on the complaints filed by the people he named as suspects in the hit and run case.

Police issued a public notice at the end of last year asking Sam and two women to turn themselves in as police wanted to speak with them.

Auapaau said Sam has been under Police Intel Surveillance for some time and there was no warrant of arrest issued before he was detained close to the police headquarters last Friday.

“Under the Criminal Procedures Act section 29, police have authority to detain or arrest someone when there is enough evidence against them, and that authority was exercised in detaining Sam in the weekend,” he said.

He also clarified that anyone who committed a crime with a maximum penalty of 3 months upwards can be detained or arrested under section 29 of the Act.

He said the two women charged with Sam were detained because “they were with Sam when he was caught.”

Why is Sam the only one facing defamation charges
Auapaau clarified that the reason they sought out Sam was because there were complaints filed against him after he publicly named and accused people on his social media page.

“Sam claimed that the people he named on social media were there with him when the incident happened,” said Auapaau.

However leaders of the HRPP Opposition have accused Cabinet Minister Laaulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao and the late Member of Parliament (MP) Vaele Iona Sekuini relating to the same incident.

Vaele’s wife Tupuola Mati Sekuini had since lodged a complaint with police and police said at the time that they need time to look at the complaint. So far nothing has yet come out of it and the complainant still has not been updated on where her matter stands.

Police Commissioner Auapaau told the media that police deal with complaints already filed and there are quite a number of complaints filed against Sam.

But said there is no official complaint filed against the opposition.

“As for Vaele’s wife’s complaint, I was told by our investigation officer that the video clips presented by her were all from fake pages,” said Auapaau.

He said the Court is very strict with the identification of the person or people who own a facebook page and police cannot rely on a page without ensuring the owner’s  true identity.

“The difference between Sam and Vaele’s wife’s complaints is that Sam’s face was splashed all over face book naming people, whereas Tupuola’s complaint was based on short video clips she presented to police,” said Auapaau.

Lealailepule naming Police Commissioner as source of Information
Vaele’s wife’s complaint is based a video clip of Lealailepule naming the Commissioner as the source of their information saying Vaele’s wife admitted to the Police Commissioner that it was her husband who was involved in the hit and run incident.

In a Talamua newstory last November, Auapaau denied being the source of that information and he blamed supporters of political parties for using him as the “scapegoat” on their social media posts.

“Isn’t that an offence against the Police especially citing the Commissioner as the source of that information?” he was asked.

“No one has filed a complaint and I cannot comment because I never met with Vaele’s wife,” he said.

The Commissioners response does not sit well with some senior police officers who spoke on anonymity. They believe that citing the Commissioner as the source of such information is a serious matter and could be an offence against the Ministry especially after the Commissioner denied being the source of that information.