The trial of eleven men accused of killing ARISE News journalist Somtochukwu Maduagwu and estate security guard Barnabas Danlami commenced on Tuesday at the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, with witnesses giving accounts of the night of the attack.
The defendants, who had previously failed to appear in court on Monday, were produced by officials of the Nigerian Correctional Services from the Kuje Correctional Centre, allowing proceedings to begin.
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 are all standing trial on a nine-count charge bordering on conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.
All eleven defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The prosecution’s case opened with the first witness, Sani Yusuf, a civil engineer and former resident of Unique Apartments, telling the court he was woken up by suspicious noises in the early hours of 29 September 2025.
Mr Yusuf said he heard gunfire followed by unfamiliar voices speaking Hausa before his door was violently forced open.
“They entered shouting, ‘Where are you? Come out!’ Then I saw two men wearing masks, one pointed a pistol at me, and the other held a torchlight.”
According to him, the intruders demanded valuables, including phones and a computer, which he handed over. He identified the items as his Samsung S25 Galaxy phone and a MacBook Air.
He added that one of the robbers ordered him at gunpoint to transfer money from his phone, but was stopped by an accomplice who urged them to leave.
Mr Yusuf said it was during the incident that he realised multiple apartments were under attack, as he began to hear screams and commotion across the building.
“I heard a scream of a female. The scream stopped after about 15 minutes,” he told the court. “Before then, I heard a lady crying for help and noticed the security guard, Joshua, saying the other guard, Barnabas Danlami, had been shot.”
After the attackers fled, the witness said he saw the body of a woman lying face down in blood within the premises, but could not immediately identify her.
On closer look, he suspected she had been shot and was “lifeless.”
He further testified that residents rushed Mr Danlami, who had sustained a gunshot wound, to Maitama District Hospital using a neighbour’s vehicle after a bandage was improvised.
Mr Yusuf said that when he later returned to the scene around 4:00 a.m., the woman’s body had been evacuated by police, after which he realised the victim was his neighbour, Ms Maduagwu.
He added that she had suffered a severe head injury and was subsequently confirmed dead at the hospital.
Also testifying, Fatou Toborteh recounted hearing loud noises and screams inside her apartment, which she shared with her children and an aunt, at about 3:00 a.m. on the same day.
She said armed men invaded their flat and carted away valuables, including phones, a laptop, cash, wallets, a wristwatch and the key to her Honda CR-V.
“We were petrified after they left and opened the balcony and saw a lady lying down with blood around her head,” she said.
“We went back to our living room but did not know who fell and later heard from neighbours that it was Ms Maduagwu.”
Ms Toborteh added that residents also learnt Mr Danlami had been shot, prompting attempts to contact the police before both victims were taken to the hospital.
Following the testimonies, the trial judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, adjourned proceedings until February 12 for continuation of the hearing.