A Lepea resident is offering a reward for the identity of a young man who lured his dog with food and cut the animal with a machete in front of a spare parts shop.

Elijah Ryan told the Samoa Observer that the incident involving his dog took place on Monday around 4pm in front of the Loibl Spare parts at Lepea.

He said he checked CCTV footage and was able to put together the events that led to his family dog being attacked.

"It was actually my dog that I had gifted to my aunty, so it was practically a family and workplace dog. He was a very lovable dog," he said.

"We were closing down so that's why no one knew what happened until I checked the camera. I heard the dog bark from the other side but I didn't expect what I saw, a trail of blood and that was how I found out the big cut on the dog's neck and I knew instantly that it was a machete."

Mr. Ryan extracted images of the unidentified young man from the CCTV and posted it on his Facebook page on Monday, appealing for the public’s help to identify him.

He added that it was clear from the CCTV footage that the young man would be in his 20s, and he was part of a group of customers who went to Loibl Spare parts on that afternoon.

A $200 reward has been offered to anyone with information that can lead to the identification of the young man.

"I've gotten three calls from people who said that they knew the guy and his village, so I've passed everything on to the Police," Mr. Ryan added.