11 SUSPECTS ARRAIGNED OVER KILLING OF ARISE NEWS JOURNALIST, SECURITY GUARD IN ABUJA
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Eleven suspects linked to the murder of Arise News journalist, Somtochukwu Maduagwu, and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami, were on Wednesday arraigned before a court in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
The FCT Police Command confirmed the development in a statement, saying the suspects were charged with criminal conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.
Maduagwu, an anchor, reporter and producer with Arise News, was killed alongside Danlami during a robbery attack at Unique Apartments, Katampe Extension, Mabushi, in the early hours of September 29, 2025.
The suspects arraigned are Shamsu Hassan, Sani Sirajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, Suleiman Badamasi, Zaharadeen Mohammed, Musa Umar (alias “Small”), Mashkur Jamil, Suleiman Sani and Abubakar Usman.
According to the police, the defendants were arraigned on a nine-count charge bordering on conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.
The 29-year-old journalist reportedly died after armed robbers stormed the three-storey apartment complex around 3:30 a.m., moving from flat to flat and dispossessing residents of their belongings.
Speaking at the time, the FCT Commissioner of Police, Ajao Adewale, said officers found Maduagwu unconscious at the scene and rushed her to Maitama General Hospital, where efforts to revive her proved unsuccessful.
Adewale condemned the killing as “cruel and senseless,” stressing that such violence “has no place in a sane society.”
Earlier, the Command’s spokesperson, SP Josephine Adeh, disclosed that preliminary investigations revealed the robbery syndicate sourced its weapons from an arms dealer operating across the Nigeria–Niger border.
Recovered items 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.
Police said the suspects also confessed to participating in other robbery attacks at Katampe 1, a hotel in Apo, and another location in Zuba, all within the FCT.
Arise Television management 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 organisation added that through her legal background and journalism career, she advocated for out-of-school children and campaigned against sexual and gender-based violence.
The court adjourned the matter to February 2026 for further proceedings.
Meanwhile, the police urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities through the Command’s emergency lines: 08032003913, 08028940883, or CRU FCT: 08107314192.
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