Man arrested for violently assaulting girlfriend at party

By Sandra Yi | Posted - July 12, 2010 at 4:51 p.m.

Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes

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![](http://media.bonnint.net/slc/2214/221477/22147727.jpg) Esili Moala

SALT LAKE COUNTY -- Police say mistrust may have driven a man to physically and sexually assault his girlfriend. They say he also convinced to her lie about her injuries. Esili Moala and his live-in girlfriend were attending a party at a house near 800 East and 8400 South in Salt Lake County this weekend. The girlfriend was talking to a female friend outside.

Police say Moala thought she was saying bad things about him, so he took her into the garage and beat her then sexually assaulted her.

"Apparently, her eye was swollen to the point it was completely shut," said Unified police Lt. Don Hutson. "So, she suffered some pretty significant trauma to that particular area. Also, her ear was kind of torn off a bit."

Police say someone at the house saw the woman's injuries and convinced her to go to the hospital. At the hospital, Moala and another man told doctors the woman fell.

When the men left, the woman told hospital staff what really happened. Police then arrested Moala and booked him into jail.

Court records show Moala has a criminal history that includes burglary and theft.

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