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The murder trial of Arise News newscaster Somtochukwu “Sommie” Maduagwu and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami, at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has been stalled.
In October 2025, PREMIUM TIMES reported that Sommie died following an armed robbery attack at her residence in the Katampe area of Abuja. Mr Danlami also lost his life in the incident.
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Following their deaths, the police launched an investigation which led to the arrest of 11 suspects.
The defendants are Shamsu Hassan, Sani Sirajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, Suleiman Badamasi, Zaharadeen Mohammed, Musa Umar, Mashkur Jamil, Suleiman Sani and Abubakar Usman.
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This newspaper reported that the suspects were arraigned on nine counts, including criminal conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.
The court subsequently remanded them at the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja.
Trial stalled
However, proceedings were halted on Monday after the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) failed to produce the defendants in court, TheCable reported.
The prosecution counsel, Adama Musa, informed the court that prison officials claimed the suspects were unaware of the hearing date.
Mr Musa added that his team had brought four witnesses to court in readiness for the commencement of the trial.
READ ALSO: How we nabbed suspected killers of Arise TV journalist, Somtochukwu Maduagwu- Police
“On the part of the prosecution, we are in court with four witnesses whom we went the extra mile to ensure are present; they abandoned their offices and are in court today,” he said.
Justice Mohammed Idris subsequently postponed the proceedings until 10 February.
He directed the witnesses to appear before the court on the adjourned date to enable the trial to proceed.
