Posted by Samuel on Wed 01st Oct, 2025 - tori.ng
Maduagwu d!ed after armed robbers stormed the six-flat apartment complex where Somtochukwu, popularly called Sommie, lived.
The International Press Centre (IPC) has demanded a swift investigation and justice over the de@th of Ms. Somtochukwu Christelle Maduagwu, a news anchor and producer with Arise News Channel, who was killed during an armed attack at her Abuja residence on September 29, 2025.
The Centre made the demand in a statement issued by Communications Officer, Olutoyin Ayoade.
SaharaReporters reported on Tuesday that new details that emerged on Maduagwu’s de@th showed the 29-year-old broadcaster d!ed as a result of negligence by the officers of the Nigeria Police Force.
Maduagwu d!ed after armed robbers stormed the six-flat apartment complex where Somtochukwu, popularly called Sommie, lived.
While initial reports suggested that Maduagwu was directly attacked by the armed robbers, her family friend Kaanayo Nwachukwu, who knew Maduagwu’s mother, revealed a different detail.
According to Nwachukwu, armed robbers stormed the six-flat apartment complex where Somtochukwu, popularly called Sommie, lived, moving from one apartment to another, dispossessing residents of their belongings.
Although the police were reportedly alerted, they failed to show up on time.
Terrified by the commotion from adjoining flats, Maduagwu attempted to escape before the robbers reached her apartment. She jumped out of her window, sustaining severe injuries from the fall.
Nwachukwu revealed that when police eventually arrived minutes later, Maduagwu was still alive.
Nwachukwu described the tragedy as avoidable, calling it a failure of the Nigerian system.
It was also gathered that Maduagwu was rushed to Maitama District Hospital, where she later d!ed, she was denied immediate medical treatment because hospital staff demanded identification before attending to her.
In its statement, IPC’s Executive Director, Lanre Arogundade, expressed grief and demanded justice.
“We are deeply saddened by the de@th of journalist Somtochukwu Christelle Maduagwu, and we demand a thorough, independent investigation, as well as the prompt prosecution of the perpetrators,” Arogundade said.
He also warned of the broader implications of inaction, saying, “Failure to conclude the investigation and bring those responsible to justice creates a dangerous environment for citizens and media professionals alike, while fostering a culture of impunity that threatens press freedom and democratic accountability.”
Maduagwu’s de@th comes barely a month after IPC condemned the de@th of Peter Ojo, an Ibadan-based journalist killed in August 2025.
The IPC said that its 2024 report revealed that at least 45 attacks on journalists and three on media outlets were recorded, many of which remain unresolved.
According to the Centre, between 1992 and 2024, a minimum of 22 journalists in Nigeria have d!ed under suspicious circumstances without conclusive investigations.
The organisation urged the Nigeria Police Force and the FCT Command to urgently conduct a transparent probe and publicly release its findings.
It also called on the Nigerian Government to reform Nigeria’s emergency response and healthcare systems, which it said failed Maduagwu in her moment of need.
Hospital authorities, IPC insisted, must “provide a public explanation regarding the delay in treatment of Somtochukwu and take steps to ensure such tragic lapses never recur.”
The organisation further urged media bodies, professional groups, civil society organisations, and media practitioners to demand accountability and justice.
It also urged media bodies to call on the Nigerian Government to investigate all unresolved cases of violence against journalists in line with Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
IPC extended condolences to Maduagwu’s family, the management of Arise News, her colleagues, and friends.