Judge in Abuja viewed video of interrogations of 11 defendants — Premium Times Nigeria
Mohammed Idris, a judge of the High Court of Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory in the Jabi district of Abuja, viewed part of a video recording of police interrogations of 11 defendants in the case concerning the deaths of Arise News Television journalist Somtochukwu Maduagwu and residential complex security guard Barnabas Danlami. This was reported by Premium Times Nigeria.
The prosecution submitted the recording through Assistant Superintendent of Police Douglas Ishaku, who testified as the fourth prosecution witness. According to him, he recorded the suspects’ statements in Hausa and translated his questions and their answers into English. The court admitted the video recording as evidence and allowed it to be played.
Viewing the video
In court, approximately the first 20 minutes of the recording were played, showing two defendants giving oral statements in turn. The viewing was stopped at the request of the defence in order not to waste the court’s time. Lawyers for all 11 defendants agreed that what had been seen was sufficient.
In the video, the first defendant, Shamsu Hassan, said that he knew about the armed robbery investigation and named the alleged participants in the attack. According to him, knives and firearms were used during the robbery, and he shot the security guard when the guard tried to stop one of the attackers. Hassan also said that he did not know about the security guard’s subsequent death.
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Cross-examination
The second defendant, Sani Sirajo, identified himself in the recording as the driver of the car in which the group allegedly arrived at the Unique Apartments residential complex in the Katampe district. He said that he heard a gunshot while he was near the car.
During cross-examination, Ishaku confirmed that the suspects’ lawyers or relatives were not present beside them while their statements were video-recorded. He also said that the victims of the robbery were unable to identify the defendants. All 11 defendants deny guilt on nine counts, including criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder.
Maduagwu and Danlami were killed during an armed attack on her home in September 2025. The hearing was adjourned until 9 December to continue the cross-examination of the witness.
