The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has arrested 12 suspected armed robbers in connection with the gruesome killing of Arise News journalist, Somtochukwu Christella Maduagwu, and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami, during a robbery at Gishiri Village, Katampe District, Abuja.
According to a statement published on Arise News website on Thursday, the breakthrough followed a coordinated operation by the Scorpion Squad under the FCT Police Command, aided by forensic and digital intelligence from Giga Forensics, a subsidiary of EIB STRATOC.
FCT Commissioner of Police ordered a full-scale manhunt for the suspects after the September 29, 2025, attack at Unique Apartment, which occurred around 3:30 a.m. Acting on actionable intelligence, operatives led by ACP Victor Godfrey apprehended the 12 suspects through a mix of digital tracking and reconstructive forensics.
Those arrested include Shamsudeen Hassan, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu (aka Abba), Sani Sirajo (aka Dan Borume), Mashkur Jamilu, Suleiman Badamasi (aka Dan-Sule), Abdul Salam Saleh, Zaharadeen Muhammad, Musa Adamu, Sumayya Mohammed, Isah Abdulrahman, and Musa Umar.
Police revealed that four suspects — Hassan, Alkamu, Sirajo, and another gang member — were first arrested after the tracking of mobile phones stolen during the attack. During interrogation, Hassan confessed to shooting the security guard, while Sirajo claimed he tried to stop Maduagwu from falling from the third floor as she attempted to escape the attackers.
Recovered items include a fabricated AK-47 rifle, 36 rounds of live ammunition, a locally made pistol, pump-action gun, two cartridges, four mobile phones belonging to the victims, as well as knives, a cutlass, and nine torchlights.
Police further disclosed that the remaining members of the gang were captured on Wednesday while allegedly planning another robbery in Maitama, Abuja. The suspects have reportedly confessed to the crime, and investigations are ongoing.
Maduagwu, an anchor and producer with Arise News, was killed in the early hours of September 29 when the robbers invaded her apartment. Contrary to earlier reports that she was shot, police investigations revealed that she fell from the third floor of her building while fleeing the assailants.
