A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Wednesday sentenced four members of a terrorist cell to death by hanging for their involvement in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, which left more than 40 worshippers dead and over 100 others injured.
The trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, handed down the sentence after finding Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, 25; Al-Qasim Idris, 20; Jamiu Abdulmalik, 26; and Abdulhaleem Idris, 25, guilty on a nine-count terrorism charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) on behalf of the Federal Government.
The court, however, discharged and acquitted the fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, 47, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish a sufficient link between him and the terrorist operation.
Delivering judgment, Justice Nwite held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and successfully established the involvement of the four convicts in the deadly attack that rocked the Catholic church during a Pentecost Sunday service.
The judge found that the defendants were key members of an Al-Shabaab terrorist cell operating in Kogi State and actively participated in planning and executing the assault on the church.
According to evidence presented before the court, the attackers stormed the church premises during worship, held congregants hostage and unleashed violence that resulted in heavy casualties and widespread devastation.
Investigators told the court that the terrorists deployed improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and AK-47 rifles during the operation, which authorities linked to an extremist ideological campaign.
In the course of the trial, the prosecution called 11 witnesses and tendered 23 exhibits, including confessional statements, intelligence reports and findings from a digital forensic investigation.
Among the exhibits admitted in evidence was a mobile communication device allegedly containing exchanges between members of the terror cell before and after the attack.
A Catholic priest who survived the massacre testified as a prosecution witness, recounting how multiple explosive devices detonated inside the church during the service, causing panic, confusion and extensive loss of life.
The witness narrated how worshippers scrambled for safety as gunfire and explosions erupted within the church premises, turning what began as a religious celebration into one of the deadliest attacks on civilians in recent Nigerian history.
In his ruling, Justice Nwite held that the cumulative evidence presented by the prosecution firmly connected the four convicts to the attack and established their membership of the terrorist network responsible for the massacre.
The court consequently convicted the defendants on the terrorism charges and sentenced each of them to death by hanging.
The judgment marks a significant milestone in efforts by Nigerian authorities to secure accountability for the Owo church massacre, one of the most devastating terror attacks recorded in the country in recent years.
