By Lagi Keresoma/

Apia, Samoa – 24 June 2025 – Former Member of Parliament, Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi has told the court that every allegation against him are “fabricated lies.”

Leala gave evidence yesterday in the high-profile case presided over by Judge Talasa Atoa Saaga and told the court that he waited 4 years to come to court to clear his name from all the accusations brought by Samuelu (Sam) Sua against him.

The allegations included bribery, corruption, defamation and murder.

Asked by the Prosecutor Leinafo Taimalelagi what he meant by waiting for this day to come, he said the “false accusations have tarnished and defamed my name, my family, my wife, children and my political party.”

Leala together with former MP Toelupe Poumuliunuku Onesome and a young man from Vaitele were suspects during the police investigation at the time of the hit and run incident that killed the university student Tu’uau Maletino on 21 April 2021.

Sam claimed in his statement that it was Leala who allegedly drove the silver land cruiser that killed Tu’uau.

Leala said a few weeks after the general election in 2021, he was a suspect but later cleared after the police investigation. However, he was surprised when his name was mentioned by Sam in an interview on the Tautai A’e program in 2023 as the person that killed Tu’uau.

“It is the first time a person has named me on social media,” said Leala.

Asked how he felt when he watched Sam’s video, he said “I had mixed feelings. I was sad, angry, disgusted and I feel I must lodge a complaint to clear my name.”

He said the situation when he named in 2023, had a very negative impact on him especially when he tried to explain and clarified to the district he represents, his extended family and he wanted to put an end to the false allegations hence the complaint to police and the charges against Sam.

“The accusations are serious, there were no conversation between us…they are just lies,” said Leala.

He clarified that he used to own a black land cruiser but after it got into an accident in 2019, the Progressive Insurance company took it and he never saw it again.

I don’t know Sam nor gave him any money/offer
Sam claimed that a few weeks after the incident, he and his wife approached Leala at his house at Vaitele and as they drove into Leala’s driveway, a black car driven by a young man and a woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform were coming out.

The driver of the black car was Leala’s son and his wife and they confirmed when asked by Sam that the silver land-cruiser parked behind Lealas house belonged to Leala.

He said after talking, Leala gave him $9000 to silence him from talking about what he allegedly saw on the night 21 April 2021.

Leala told the court that he never knew Sam and all the conversation and events Sam claimed to have happened between them “never happened and are lies”.

“I never gave him any money nor offer to take his family abroad as he claimed,” said Leala.

Leala’s son Simon and daughter-in-law Florence also testified that they never met Sam as he claimed and they never spoke.

On the assassination claim that Leala gave Sam a gun to kill two cabinet ministers, “that too never happened,” according to Leala.

“Laauli and Olo, we grew up together and all live at Vaitele and enter Parliament at the same time, and politics aside, we all know each other well,” he said.

Fear for safety of family
There was a point Leala said he feared for his and family’s safety after Sam accused him of many things.

“The allegation posed and put my family at a very high-risk situation because I have been labelled as a bad person by many on social media,” said Leala.

In cross examination, Sam’s lawyer Kathryn Dalziel put to Leala that he has not shown or expressed any sorrow about Tu’uau’s death.

Leala countered by asking a question of his own “how do you feel if you are blamed for someone’s death knowing that you are innocent?”

He further said that if he performed a traditional apology – Ifoga, that would only reflect differently on him but he does feel for Tu’uau’s family.

He was asked why he thought his family’s safety was at risk.

“How is Tu’uau’s family a threat to you?” asked Dalziel

Leala said the things said on social media and people calling him names.

“Did Tu’uau’s family stalk you?” asked Dalziel,

“Maybe or maybe not, but it is not just Tu’uau’s family but his extended family and other people are against me,” he said.

He said there were threatening messages and will provide those for the court after.

Leala & Sam met two years after hit & run incident
In Sam’s statement, he claimed he and his wife Sivai went to Leala’s house a few weeks after the 2021 incident, but Leala said he only met Sam sometime in July 2023.

According to Leala, he did not know it was Sam that came to his house wanting to talk about Tu’uau’s death.

“I cannot recall if I met this person but after watching the video, I remember someone that looked like him that came to my house in July 2023,” said Leala.

Sam’s video went viral in September 2023.

He told Leala that he worked at Esau’s mechanical workshop and Leala said he knew Esau well.

“He (Sam) told me that he wanted to talk about Tu’uau’s death and I told him to go to the police, then kicked him out,” said Leala.

Leala also did not give him money he asked for and did not think much about it until the video interview came out.

No evidence of statement taken
One of the areas that Dalziel spent time on was the statement allegedly made by Leala.

She pointed out to Leala that there is no evidence in court that he was interviewed by police or any statement or alibi to prove his whereabouts on the night of the incident.

Leala insisted that police took his statement, however, no copy of his statements or that of his family existed in the files now before the court.

The five-week trial is in its final week and prosecution is scheduled to wrap up their case today with the defence to take the stand on Wednesday.