Eleven suspects were arraigned in a Federal Capital Territory High Court on Wednesday in connection with the murders of Arise News journalist Somtochukwu Maduagwu and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami.
According to a statement from the FCT Police Command, the suspects face a nine-count charge bordering on criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder.
Persecondnews recalls that the victims were killed on September 29, 2025, during a robbery at Unique Apartments in the Katampe Extension area of Abuja.
The defendants include Shamsu Hassan, Sani Sirajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, Suleiman Badamasi, Zaharadeen Mohammed, Musa Umar (aka “Small”), Mashkur Jamil, Suleiman Sani, and Abubakar Usman.
The 29-year-old journalist died in the early hours of September 29, 2025, when armed robbers stormed the three-storey apartment complex about 3:30 am, moving from flat to flat and dispossessing residents of their belongings.
According to the police, preliminary investigations showed the syndicate procured its firearms from an arms dealer operating across the Nigeria–Niger border.
Items recovered from the suspects include a fabricated AK-47 rifle, 36 rounds of live ammunition, a locally made pistol, a pump-action gun, two cartridges, four mobile phones belonging to the victims, knives, a cutlass, and nine torchlights.
The suspects also confessed to participating in other armed robbery operations at Katampe 1, a hotel in Apo, and another in Zuba, all within the FCT.
Arise Television management had described Maduagwu as “delectable, intelligent, and bold,” noting that she joined the station in September 2024 after representing Nigeria at the Miss Tourism World pageant in Quanzhou, China, in 2023.
The management noted that through her legal background and reporting skills, she advocated for out-of-school children and campaigned against sexual and gender-based violence.
The case has been adjourned to February 16, 2026 for further hearing.
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