Two Men Charged with Beating and Strangling a Man to Death in February

WASHINGTON - U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro announced yesterday that Rico Barnes, 36, and Alphonso Walker, 39, both from the District, have been charged with murder in connection with the Feb. 11, 2026, beating and strangulation death of 40-year-old Syed Hussein.

Barnes and Walker were both charged with one count of first-degree murder while armed in D.C. Superior Court on April 2, 2026. A preliminary hearing is set for Rico Barnes on May 18, 2026, and for Alphonso Walker on June 2, 2026.

As described in the arrest warrants issued in the case, at approximately 3:33 a.m., on Feb. 11, 2026, D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Service (FEMS) members responded to a 9-1-1 call that reported smoke coming from apartment 106, inside 1437 Rhode Island Avenue, N.W., a multi-unit apartment building.  Responding FEMS members saw the smoke and entered the one-bedroom apartment, which was unlocked. Inside the members found Mr. Hussain lying on the floor, unconscious and unresponsive, with his wrists and ankles bound by neckties. The victim had succumbed to his injuries. The apartment was otherwise unoccupied.

An autopsy on Mr. Hussain's remains later determined that the manner of his death was a homicide and that the cause of his death was blunt force trauma and ligature strangulation.

During the subsequent MPD investigation, detectives gathered security camera footage as evidence, including from a camera covering the entrance area to Mr. Hussain's apartment building.  That footage showed Mr. Hussain interacting with the two defendants, at 1:40 a.m. on February 11, 2026. The footage shows the defendants physically attacking Mr. Hussain outside the doorway and then following him as he enters the building.  Approximately, an hour later the suspects are recorded leaving the building carrying large bags.

On February 14, 2026, MPD detectives recovered numerous items belonging to Mr. Hussain, in a residence in a different neighborhood.

Joining the announcement was Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.

Charges in a complaint are merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

 2026 CF1 004807; 2026 CF1 004889