A 40-year-old man was followed home, robbed, beaten, strangled and burned after letting two men into his building, police say.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nearly seven weeks after Syed Hammad Hussain was found dead inside his smoke-filled Logan Circle apartment, authorities have charged two Northwest Washington men in a killing police say began when Hussain came home with food and let strangers into his building.

For investigators, the case moved from a mysterious fire scene to what police now describe as a random robbery that turned lethal. Hussain, 40, was found bound at the wrists and ankles, and an autopsy later found he died from blunt force trauma and ligature strangulation. Police first arrested Rico Barnes, 36, on March 30. Alphonso Walker, 39, was charged the next day while already in custody on unrelated charges. Hearings are now set in D.C. Superior Court.

Police say the attack started at about 1:30 a.m. on Feb. 11 after Hussain returned to the Zenith condominium building on the 1400 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW. Interim Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said Hussain had gone out for food and was simply coming back home. Surveillance footage reviewed by detectives showed Hussain enter the building and then respond when someone knocked at the door. Carroll said Hussain likely thought the men were fellow residents. Instead, investigators say, Barnes and Walker moved in behind him, attacked him near the entrance and forced him toward his first-floor apartment. Court records describe the unit as a loft-style one-bedroom condo. Police say the men beat him, tied him up and stole property before setting a small fire and leaving.

The crime came to light about two hours later, when D.C. Fire and EMS responded around 3:33 a.m. to a report of smoke in the hallway. Firefighters entered apartment 106, which officials said was closed but unlocked, and found smoke inside and Hussain lying face down, unconscious and unresponsive. Officers later reported blood around his head, on the floor and on a nearby wall. Two 25-pound metal dumbbells were found near the body. The chief medical examiner ruled the death a homicide caused by blunt force trauma and strangulation. Officials said the fire had been set after Hussain was already dead, and thermal injuries were suffered after death. That finding turned the fire scene into a homicide investigation centered on violence first and arson second.

Detectives said surveillance footage became the backbone of the case. Video showed the suspects entering with little in hand and leaving about 2:40 a.m. with much more. One man was seen pushing a bicycle and carrying bags. Another wore clothing investigators say he did not have when he first entered the building. Police later said the apartment had been ransacked and that property missing from Hussain included an electric bicycle, jewelry, watches, an El Salvadoran passport and foreign currency valued at as much as $50,000. Investigators also tracked Hussain’s phone after it was removed from the apartment. Police recovered numerous items belonging to him on Feb. 14 at a residence in another neighborhood. Authorities have said they do not believe Hussain knew the men accused in the attack and have not linked the case to other robberies.

The legal case has moved in steps. Barnes was arrested March 30 by the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force on a D.C. Superior Court warrant and charged with first-degree murder while armed under a felony-murder theory. Walker was charged April 1 under a booking order while he remained jailed on separate matters. Federal prosecutors announced on April 3 that both men had been charged in Superior Court with first-degree murder while armed. A preliminary hearing for Barnes is set for May 18, and Walker’s is set for June 2. As in any criminal case, the charges are allegations, and both men are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Police have said they do not believe there are additional suspects still at large.

The case has shaken a part of Northwest Washington better known for restaurants, apartment buildings and steady foot traffic than for killings inside homes. Hussain’s uncle, Syed K. Hussain, told reporters after the arrests that the family was devastated and planned to follow the case as it moves forward. Friends and relatives described Hussain as outgoing, sharply dressed and settled into life in Washington. Carroll said the facts made the case especially hard for investigators because, in his telling, Hussain was doing nothing more unusual than picking up food and heading home. Police have not announced a motive beyond robbery, and they have not said whether either defendant has entered a plea.

For now, the case stands at the charging stage, with two men accused and detectives saying the victim appears to have been chosen at random. The next public milestone is Barnes’ May 18 hearing, followed by Walker’s hearing on June 2.

Author note: Last updated April 20, 2026.