Police say a Northwest Washington man was beaten, strangled and left in a burned apartment after what investigators believe was a robbery.
WASHINGTON — D.C. police have charged a 36-year-old man with murder in the killing of a 40-year-old resident who was found dead inside his Logan Circle apartment after firefighters put out a small fire there in February, authorities said Tuesday.
The arrest moved forward a homicide case that shocked residents in one of Northwest Washington’s busiest neighborhoods. Investigators say Syed Hammad Hussain was attacked inside his building after returning home in the early morning hours of Feb. 11. Police allege the assault ended with Hussain dead in his apartment and the fire set afterward. One suspect is now charged, a second suspect has been identified, and detectives say they do not believe anyone else is still being sought.
According to police, fire crews were sent to the 1400 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW at about 3:33 a.m. for smoke in a hallway. Firefighters entered an apartment, put out what officials later described as a small fire, and found an adult man unconscious and not breathing. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim was later identified as Hussain, 40, of Northwest Washington. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the death a homicide and determined that Hussain died from blunt force trauma and strangulation. Investigators later concluded the fire was set after he was already dead, a finding that turned an apartment fire response into a much broader homicide investigation.
Police announced that Rico Barnes, 36, of Northwest Washington, was arrested Monday by members of the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force on a D.C. Superior Court warrant. He was charged with first-degree murder while armed-felony murder. At a police briefing, Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll called the case “particularly heinous,” saying the victim had simply gone out for food and returned home. Cmdr. Kevin Kentish said surveillance video showed Hussain being followed into the building by two suspects. Kentish said the men assaulted him in the lobby and forced him toward his apartment. Authorities say the suspects later left with property taken from the unit, including clothing and a bicycle. Police have not publicly described a prior connection between Hussain and the suspects, and Kentish said detectives do not believe Hussain knew them before the night he was killed.
The case drew attention not only because of the violence described by investigators but also because of where it happened. Logan Circle is a dense residential area with restaurants, apartment buildings and steady foot traffic, and neighbors told local outlets they had trouble believing such a brutal crime happened there. Early reports said Hussain had been found tied and taped up. Later court-based reporting described his wrists and ankles as bound with neckties and noted blood around his head and nearby walls and flooring. Those details, combined with the medical examiner’s findings, helped shape the picture investigators presented: a prolonged attack, theft from the apartment, and a fire set in an apparent effort to cover up the crime. Police have not publicly released a full motive beyond saying robbery appears to have been central to the attack.
Investigators say the case is not over. Police have publicly said a second suspect has been identified and is already in custody on unrelated charges. Officials have not yet announced that person’s name in the homicide case, though they said additional charges are expected. Detectives also said they do not believe there are any more outstanding suspects, suggesting the remaining work will focus on building out the prosecution through video evidence, physical evidence and witness statements. Any future court hearings for Barnes are expected to move through D.C. Superior Court. The second suspect’s status, including the timing of any homicide charge, remains one of the clearest next steps in the case.
For residents of the building and the surrounding blocks, the case has remained disturbing weeks after the fire. The first public details came not through a homicide call, but through a smoke response that led firefighters to a body inside a home. That sequence has given the case an especially grim place in local memory. Carroll said the victim appeared to have been taken advantage of after returning home alone, and Kentish said detectives spent extensive time reviewing surveillance footage to track the suspects’ movements before and after the attack. The investigation, officials said, depended on piecing together what happened between the moment Hussain entered the building and the moment the suspects left with bags of property.
The case now stands at the charging stage for one suspect, with police saying more action is still expected. The next major development is likely the filing of charges against the second suspect and the release of additional court records in the weeks ahead.
Author note: Last updated April 1, 2026.