- Senita Lavulavu, 48, was arrested and accused of attacking a care facility resident in Pleasant Grove.
- The incident involved an argument over a cellphone, escalating to physical violence, police say.
- Lavulavu allegedly admitted losing control and later turned herself in to police.
PLEASANT GROVE — The assistant manager of a care facility in Pleasant Grove was arrested and accused of attacking one of the residents.
Senita Lotomoana Lavulavu, 48, of Springville, was booked into the Utah County Jail on Monday for investigation of aggravated abuse of a vulnerable adult and unlawful detention.
Pleasant Grove police were called to a facility that "cares for adults that are mentally handicapped, including handicaps such as autism and PTSD," according to a police booking affidavit. The affidavit does not name the facility.
Lavulavu is an assistant manager at the facility and got into an argument with an 18-year-old woman, who is a client, "regarding control over the victim's cellphone." A witness told police that Lavulavu "became very enraged and pulled the victim to the ground by her hair in an upstairs living room area where the argument started," the affidavit alleges.
"The witness said the victim was held down by her arms initially, but then was held down by her throat and described the victim as being choked by" Lavulavu, according to the affidavit.
The woman and Lavulavu then separated, but as the woman was walking away, "she continued cussing swear words at Senita, prompting Senita to become enraged a second time, pursuing the victim down the stairs and grabbing the victim by the hair and throwing her to the ground," the arrest report states.
Lavulavu then allegedly got on top of the woman and continued "to choke the victim by the throat. (The witness) said Senita continued to the point that the witness worried for the victim's life and called out multiple times for Senita to stop," police wrote in the affidavit.
As Lavulavu was leaving the residence, she allegedly told the victim, "I'm going to kill you," and then said she was going to the police department to turn herself in.
Lavulavu later showed up at the department and told officers "she lost control and pulled the victim to the ground during a verbal argument. She described the argument as starting with the victim throwing her cellphone and a TV remote at (her)," according to the affidavit. She allegedly said that when the woman began kicking at her, "that is possibly what set her off."
Lavulavu then told police that the witness was a co-worker and that she would not lie to investigators.
