Katampe, the community where Somtochukwu Maduagwu, the deceased Arise TV journalist, lived, and its neighbouring communities have been under the siege of armed robbers for several years, residents have said.
Ms Maduagwu, 29, a lawyer and news anchor with the television station, died as a result of injuries she sustained when robbers invaded the block of six flats, where she lived in the early hours of Monday, 29 September.
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The incident sparked widespread criticism of the country’s increasing security challenges.
FCT Police Commissioner, Ajao Adewale, said she lost her life trying to escape from the robbers by jumping down from her apartment on the topmost floor of the three-storey building.
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He also said one of the two private guards on duty sustained a gunshot injury while challenging the robbers.
“Regarding the circumstances surrounding the incident, to set the record straight, some hoodlums, armed robbers, specifically gained access into Unique Apartment, where Sommie lives. It is a three-story twin building with 18 flats around the Gishiri axis of Katampe, under the Mabushi Divisional Area. At this point, two guards were on duty, security men.
“These are private guards, and one of them, who dared to challenge, sustained a gunshot (wound). Under these conditions, panic would have resulted from this kind of environment. Sommie actually occupied an apartment on the topmost floor of the building. And out of fear, she jumped down from that third story, the top floor. The consequences are what we are seeing. It’s so sad, so unfortunate,” the commissioner said during an interview on Arise TV.
In a statement earlier, the FCT police command said Mr Adewale had “ordered a discreet and comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.” The police also said it had deployed intelligence and operational assets in the area to identify, track, and apprehend those responsible for the heinous crime.
When PREMIUM TIMES visited the six-apartment complex, it was gathered that Ms Maduagwu’s co-tenants had fled following the robbery attack that led to her tragic death.
This couldn’t be confirmed because our reporters were not allowed into the compound.
Incessant robbery attacks
However, residents of Katampe, located in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), told this newspaper that the community and its neighbours have been under siege for some time now.
They alleged that despite the incessant robbery attacks, the police have not done anything about it.
“Recently, two houses here (on the same street where the presenter died) were robbed too, and some other places around here,” a resident, who requested anonymity, said.
Another resident, Mubarak Saliu, corroborated this by narrating his ordeal while at his boss’ home on the same street.
According to Mr Saliu, robbers invaded the place in the night and took away some expensive properties.
“Last year, my boss was not around. I was there working. The armed robbers came that night and carted away some expensive properties,” Mr Saliu told our reporters.
“I am on the edge right now. I am losing my sanity gradually. I am very scared for my family because where we stay right now in Katampe, Mpape, Abuja, has been under armed robbery attack almost on a daily basis. I can’t sleep at night again due to xhese armed robbery attacks every night,” Kate, another resident of Katampe 1 along Mpape, told PREMIUM TIMES.
“My heart is beating as I am talking to you. Every night, I am really scared. Its is worse when there is no light at night or whenever it is raining. The most difficult part is that it has continued unabated. Nobody has ever been arrested or caught. The police seem completely incapacitated or not just willing to do anything.”
A resident, who simply identified himself as Mr Ogene, also lamented that his business was ruined after robbers attacked him one night in September.
“Just last month, all my animals – pigs, cows, goats, and others – were stolen in one night”, he said.
According to him, Katampe, Mpape, Gishiri, and Apo resettlement are communities that are not far from Aso Villa, the seat of the Nigerian Government, yet residents live in fear as criminals operate unchallenged by the police.
Self-help
Some of the residents also spoke about the alleged inadequacy of the police and have resorted to self-help by constituting vigilante groups.
“In the whole of Girishi, we have only one police post, and you won’t find more than two or three officers there; they don’t even have a rifle,” a POS trader, who also does not want her name to be mentioned, claimed.
She said the residents only rely on the Mabushi Police station in the Mabushi area, adding that even when its personnel are invited in times of distress, they don’t respond.
She also blamed that challenge on the location, saying Gishiri is far from Mabushi.
“When you call them, they will always give one excuse or the other. They won’t even answer you because they don’t even have enough personnel or guns to use. But the community stood up and gathered some vigilantes who are currently working well, ” she said.
Mr Saliu narrated that on the night his boss’ place was attacked, the police were invited, but they (police) said they had no fuel in their vehicle to carry out any operation.
“We called the police at Mabushi that night, but they didn’t come. They said they didn’t have fuel,” he said.
“There was a time the vigilante caught one of these thieves, and the people wanted to even kill him, but I told them not to, and they didn’t. The moment the police came, the thief ran into the police van. Later, they released him.”
While the vigilantes are working relentlessly at the Gishiri community, the story seems different at other places in the Katampe area.
“Several areas in the community have set up vigilantes, but it has ended up worse. We can’t even say if it’s the vigilantes or the robbers again,” Kate lamented.
No officer could be reached for comment when PREMIUM TIMES went to the police post in Gishiri police post, which is under the Mabushi Divisional Area.
When contacted, the spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, Josephine Adeh, said “it never received reports of incessant robbery attacks in the area”.
“We have not received reports of incessant robbery attacks in the areas you have mentioned.
“We have police presence in those areas and are working closely with the community members. If there are particular cases, please cite them and provide the necessary information to aid investigations.”
When he assumed duty on 26 March, Mr Adewale had assured residents of the nation’s capital of impactful and proactive policing.
“On behalf of the officers and men of this command, I appreciate the quality leadership that the immediate past CP exhibited while he was here. I want to assure you that we will fit well into the shoes. When you’re in your office, you will receive good news about us.
“For the men, I promise them quality leadership. For the residents of Abuja, I assure you of quality service delivery, impactful policing, and intelligence-driven and proactive policing under my watch. That I can assure you. With God on our side, we will move from height to greater height,” he said.
