CEDAR CITY — A man was arrested in Cedar City early Friday morning after he allegedly tried to regain entry to a residence that he had just been asked to leave.
Siliva Ricky Tapusoa, 30, was booked into Iron County Jail shortly after 5:30 a.m. on suspicion of multiple charges, including attempted burglary of a dwelling, a third-degree felony, and misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief, intoxication and making violent threats.
The incident reportedly happened before 4 a.m. at a duplex located in the southern section of Cedar City.
According to a probable cause statement filed in support of Tapusoa’s arrest, a woman who lives at the residence said Tapusoa was among a group of other people who had gone to her home after having been at a bar together. She and Tapusoa knew each other through mutual acquaintances, according to the affidavit.
At some point, Tapusoa, who was reportedly intoxicated, began acting disorderly, prompting the others to try to get him to leave.
“Other parties in the residence began to push him outside to try to get him to calm down,” the arresting officer wrote in the affidavit. They reportedly pushed Tapusoa outside while shutting the front door and locking it behind him.
“At this point Siliva allegedly threw a rock through the front window of the residence and also attempted to kick the door in while making threats of violence towards the victim,” the charging document states.
Tapusoa also allegedly broke one of the windows of a vehicle that was parked in front of the residence, the arresting officer wrote. Broken glass was found in the driveway, along with a hole in the front window. The front door of the residence was also found to be damaged, according to the affidavit.
Utah court records indicate that Tapusoa has an extensive criminal history that includes several felony and misdemeanor convictions dating back to 2012. In one of his most recent cases, he pleaded guilty in August 2020 to assaulting a prisoner while incarcerated at Utah State Prison. He was sentenced to zero to five years in prison in that case, although that sentence was allowed to run concurrently with the one(s) he was serving at the time.
The charging documents allege that there is substantial evidence to support the felony charge against Tapusoa, with the alleged crimes being committed while he was on probation or parole.
This report is based on information provided by law enforcement and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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