The FCT High Court in Jabi, Abuja, on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, viewed a confessional video recording of 11 suspects standing trial for the armed robbery and murder of Arise News journalist Somtochukwu Maduagwu and security guard Barnabas Danlami. The incident occurred in September 2025 at Unique Apartments in Katampe, Abuja.
Judge Mohammed Idris, flanked by prosecution and defence lawyers, watched the footage on a laptop while the rest of the courtroom heard the audio. The video, presented by the prosecution's lawyer, Adama Musa, was played through the fourth prosecution witness, Douglas Ishaku, an assistant superintendent of police who conducted the interrogations in Hausa and translated both his questions and the suspects' answers into English.
As reported by Premium Times, the video captured police interrogation sessions involving all 11 defendants charged in the case. Only about the first 20 minutes of the recording was played before defence lawyers asked that the playback be stopped, citing the need to save the court's time.
What the Video Showed
In the clip, the first defendant, Shamsu Hassan, said he was aware he was being questioned over armed robbery. He named other gang members he said were at the scene, identified weapons including knives and guns, and admitted shooting the security guard after the guard tried to overpower one of the gang members. Hassan said he did not know the guard later died, and that a woman jumped from the building following the gunshot. He said he collected N200,000 as his share of the stolen goods, which also included a car.
The second defendant, Sani Sirajo, said he drove the vehicle that brought the gang to Unique Apartments in Katampe, where Maduagwu was killed on September 5, 2025. He said the car was provided by a co-defendant and that he picked up various gang members from locations across Abuja, including Sauka, Madalla, and Kubwa, following directions from a suspect identified as Kabari. Sirajo said he was still parked outside when he heard a gunshot.
Cross-Examination Raises Procedural Questions
Four lawyers representing the first to sixth defendants then cross-examined Ishaku on how the confessional statements were obtained. Counsel for the first defendant, A.B. Samson, asked when the written and video statements were taken, but Ishaku said he could not recall the dates. Samson also established that no lawyers or relatives of the suspects were present when their statements were recorded, raising questions about compliance with safeguards under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
Ishaku also confirmed that none of the robbery victims could identify any of the defendants. He additionally said he could not recall the name of the hospital or any staff member connected to the arrest of the second defendant, though he said he knew what the defendant was being treated for at the time.
Adjournment and Status of Defendants
The judge adjourned proceedings until December 9 for the continuation of cross-examination. The 11 defendants, who were arraigned in January 2026 and remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre, have all pleaded not guilty to nine counts of criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder.
In related coverage, Legit.ng reported that a police officer told an FCT High Court that suspects allegedly confessed to their roles in the robbery that led to Somtochukwu Maduagwu’s death. The witness said investigations indicated that Maduagwu was pushed from her third-floor apartment during the attack. The court heard that eight of the 11 defendants were allegedly involved in the September 2025 robbery at Unique Apartments.
