Witnesses Tell Court They Cannot Recognise Suspects in Arise TV Reporter’s Murder Case

Two prosecution witnesses on Tuesday told an FCT High Court sitting in Abuja that they were unable to identify any of the 11 defendants standing trial over the alleged robbery and murder of Arise Television correspondent, Somtochukwu “Sommie” Maduagwu.

The witnesses, testifying as PW1 and PW2, appeared before the court in the ongoing trial of the 11 suspects charged with a nine-count amended charge bordering on criminal conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.

Maduagwu, a 29-year-old Arise Television journalist, died in the early hours of September 29, 2025, after she jumped from a three-storey building at her residence in Katampe, Abuja, while reportedly trying to escape armed robbers

The first prosecution witness, Sani Yusuf, told the court that the incident occurred at Unique Apartments, Katampe, between 3am and 3:30am on the said date. He said he was asleep when he heard loud noises, shouting in Hausa and sounds he believed were gunshots.

“I woke up to noise around 2:30am. I heard people shouting in Hausa and a loud bang that sounded like a gunshot. Someone was shouting, ‘Where are you? Come out!’,” Yusuf testified.

He said he later saw two masked men in his apartment, one carrying a torchlight and what appeared to be a knife. The assailants searched his apartment, took his Samsung Galaxy S25 phone and MacBook Air laptop, checked other rooms and then left.

Yusuf further told the court that shortly after the attackers fled, he heard one of the estate’s security guards, Musa Joshua, shouting that his colleague, Barnabas, had been shot.

“When I got downstairs, I saw a female tenant lying face down in a pool of blood. At that time, I thought she had also been shot,” he said.

He said residents rushed the injured security guard, Barnabas, to Maitama District Hospital. Yusuf added that he later went to the hospital around 4am and saw the same female body he had earlier seen at the apartment, now placed on a gurney.

“I recognised her when she was no longer face down. I later realised she was my neighbour and saw she had serious head injuries,” he said.

Yusuf told the court that Barnabas later died at the hospital. He said he returned to the estate to retrieve identification means for both victims and later learnt that the deceased woman was Somtochukwu Maduagwu, whom he recognised from the estate’s group chat.

The second prosecution witness, a female resident of the apartment complex, also told the court that she could not identify any of the defendants.

She said she was sleeping in her apartment with her aunt and her aunt’s children, including a 14-year-old girl, when the robbers forced their way inside, demanding money and mobile phones.

“I pointed to my phone on the floor. I had no cash in my room. He searched my drawer, found my wallet and my car key. Later, I found my wallet at the entrance with my debit card on the floor,” she said.

She added that the robbers later discovered N75,000 in a pouch beside her bed, took the money and went downstairs to confirm her vehicle using the remote key.

Another armed robber entered her aunt’s room and carted away a gold-plated wristwatch, an iPhone 11 Pro Max and a Samsung phone, while another suspect stole a laptop, a Lenovo FreePad and cash from the room of her 14-year-old cousin, she added.

She told the court that her aunt sustained a knee injury during the incident and was hospitalised for three days.

The witness further testified that the assailants eventually drove off in her white Honda CR-V.

“After they left, we went to the balcony and saw Sommie lying on the ground with blood around her head. We didn’t know it was her at first,” she said.

She added that neighbours later confirmed that the woman who fell from the third floor was Somtochukwu Maduagwu, while a security guard, Barnabas, had been shot. She said both victims were taken to the hospital.

None of the defence counsel cross-examined the two witnesses.

The judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, subsequently adjourned the case to February 12, 2026, for the continuation of trial.