Abuja Court Arraigns Eleven Suspects Over Killing of Arise News Journalist

An Abuja court has arraigned eleven suspects accused of involvement in the killing of an Arise News journalist, Somtochukwu Maduagwu, and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami, during a robbery attack in Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The suspects were brought before the court on charges bordering on criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder, according to the Federal Capital Territory Police Command.

Miss Maduagwu, a broadcast journalist with Arise News, was killed alongside the security guard in the early hours of Monday, September 29, 2025, when armed assailants allegedly stormed Unique Apartments in Katampe Extension, Mabushi, Abuja.

Police identified the defendants as Shamsu Hassan, Sani Sirajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, Suleiman Badamasi, Zaharadeen Mohammed, Musa Umar (also known as “Small”), Mashkur Jamil, Suleiman Sani, and Abubakar Usman.

In a statement, the police said the suspects were arraigned on a nine-count charge, including conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder. Investigators explained that the attackers invaded the three-storey apartment complex around 3:30 a.m., moving from one flat to another and dispossessing residents of valuables.

The FCT Commissioner of Police, Ajao Adewale, said officers who arrived at the scene found Miss Maduagwu unconscious. She was rushed to Maitama General Hospital, where medical personnel attempted to revive her through cardiopulmonary resuscitation, but she was later pronounced dead.

Describing the killing as “cruel and senseless,” Adewale said such acts of violence have no place in society.

Police spokesperson, Superintendent Josephine Adeh, disclosed that preliminary investigations revealed the suspects obtained weapons from an arms dealer operating along routes near the Nigeria–Niger border.

Items recovered from the suspects include a locally fabricated AK-47 rifle, 36 rounds of live ammunition, a pump-action gun, a locally made pistol, knives, a cutlass, torchlights, cartridges, and mobile phones believed to belong to the victims.

The police also said the suspects confessed to carrying out other robbery operations in parts of Abuja, including Katampe One, Apo, and Zuba.

Arise Television management described Miss Maduagwu as intelligent, courageous, and dedicated, noting that she joined the organisation on September 1, 2024, after representing Nigeria at the Miss Tourism World pageant in China in 2023. Her legal training and journalism work, the company said, fueled her advocacy for out-of-school children and her campaign against sexual and gender-based violence.

The court adjourned the case to February 2026 for further hearing.

Meanwhile, the police urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities through its emergency lines: 08032003913, 08028940883, and 08107314192.