'Just going out to get food': Man returning to apartment building beaten to death by strangers he let in behind him, cops say

A man returning to his Washington, D.C., apartment building with late-night food was ambushed, tied up, and beaten to death before the suspects lit the home ablaze, authorities say.

Rico Barnes, 36, has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 40-year-old Syed Hammad Hussain, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) announced. Another suspect is in police custody on unrelated charges but charges relating to Hussain's killing have not been brought, authorities said during a press conference streamed by local ABC affiliate WJLA on Tuesday.

On Feb. 11 at about 1:30 a.m., Hussain was returning to his apartment building on the 1400 block of Rhode Island Avenue Northwest in Washington, D.C., which is less than a mile away from the White House. He was "literally just going out to get food and coming back home," MPD Interim Police Chief Jeff Carroll said.

Hussain had walked inside the building when he heard a knock on the door, according to investigators. "He let them inside. I'm sure he probably thought it was somebody else from the building," Carroll stated. "Unfortunately, we see things like that all the time, where there may be a fellow neighbor in an apartment building or things like that, and folks will let him in. In this case, they just took advantage of him completely."

Investigators said they have no indication the suspects knew the victim. "It appears they just picked him as he was walking back home," according to the chief.

Once inside, Barnes and the other man reportedly beat Hussain and forced him into his first-floor apartment, "described as a loft-style one-bedroom condo," according to an arrest affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime. The suspects are believed to have then tied him up and beat him before stealing many items, setting fire to the home, and leaving.

Surveillance footage captured the suspects "carrying multiple bags and clothing," the court document goes on. Barnes allegedly held a bicycle and two bags, and wore "a black leather style jacket and a winter coat underneath," none of which he had when he entered the building. The other suspect is also seen carrying several bags.

Authorities got a 911 call at about 3:30 a.m. that morning about "smoke detection." When first responders arrived, they found apartment 106 "closed but unlocked," and they entered the apartment "to find it engulfed in smoke."

Once the fire was put out, authorities "observed a male victim lying prone on the floor in an unconscious and unresponsive state," the affidavit states. The man — later identified as Hussain — "did not display any signs consistent with life," and he was pronounced dead.

There was blood around his head, on the floor, and on a nearby wall, authorities said. He was also "bound at the wrists and ankles by neckties," and two 25-pound metal dumbbells were on the floor nearby.

An autopsy determined Hussain's cause of death to be homicide caused by blunt force trauma and ligature strangulation. Investigators learned that "[t]hermal injuries were present" on the body, but they were determined to have been suffered after he was already dead.

Police began investigating that morning, and they reportedly spoke with a witness who was with the two suspects just before the attack. With this witness and others' help, investigators learned that the suspects allegedly stole an electric bicycle, jewelry, watches, an El Salvadoran passport, and foreign currency totaling up to $50,000.

The affidavit — dated March 18 — stated that investigators found probable cause to charge Barnes with Hussain's murder. The suspect was arrested, jailed, and appeared in court on Tuesday.

He is set to return to court on May 18.