THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has arrested three suspected members of a notorious “one-chance” armed robbery syndicate in connection with the killing of Abuja-based lawyer, Nwamaka Mediatrix Chigbo.
A statement by the command on Sunday, January 11, noted that the suspects were arrested following intelligence-led operations with operatives of the Command’s Scorpion Squad tracking the victim’s mobile phone.
It noted that the squad carried out the follow-up operations between January 5 and January 10, 2026, across Dei-Dei, Dakwa and Dan-Tata communities in the Kubwa area.
“Further investigations revealed that on 5th January, 2026, at about 5:50 p.m., Barr. Princess Chigbo unknowingly boarded their black Volkswagen Golf 3 vehicle along the Kubwa Expressway, unaware that the occupants were criminals.
“Upon entry into the vehicle, the suspects wound up the tinted windows and threatened the victim with weapons in an attempt to force her to pay ransom for her own release. When she allegedly refused to cooperate, she was physically assaulted and pushed out of the moving vehicle along the Kubwa Expressway, resulting in her death.
“The suspects further admitted to dispossessing the victim of her Android mobile phone, which was later sold at Dei-Dei for the sum of One Hundred and Twenty Thousand Naira (₦120,000),” the statement read.
Those arrested were identified as Saifullahi Yusuf, 22, Ishau Yusuf, 24, who are biological brothers, and Minka’ilu Jibril, also known as Dan-Hajia.
Police said all three are from Kaduna State and were residing around Dei-Dei, Abuja.
Items recovered during the arrest included scissors, dagger knives, other knives, a long chain allegedly used to restrain victims, and a pair of pliers.
The ICIR reports that the arrests followed earlier accounts by the victim’s family, who initially believed she had been kidnapped.
The family said Chigbo went missing on Monday, January 5, while she was on a phone call with her younger sister, Anthonia. When the call reconnected after a brief interruption, Anthonia reportedly heard her sister’s distress cries before the line went dead.
According to the family, a subsequent call went through, and a male voice demanded ₦3 million, threatening to kill her if the ransom was not paid.
The family alerted the police and was put in contact with the Scorpion Squad, which commenced tracking the suspects. During later call attempts, the family said they heard Chigbo screaming in pain and pleading for help before the line went permanently silent.
In the early hours of January 6, police reportedly informed the family that a woman had been found in critical condition and taken to a specialist hospital in Abuja. Her elder sister later identified her as Chigbo at the hospital mortuary.
Chigbo was a member of the Nigerian Bar Association, Abuja branch, the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), and other professional and religious groups.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M