Owo Catholic Church Massacre: Court Court Sentence four to death  by hanging over, acquits one

By Vivian Okejeme

Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, Wednesday, sentenced to death by hanging, four out of the five terrorists that attacked the Saint Francis Catholic Church, Owo in Ondo state.

The June 5, 2022, attack during a church service saw 43 people instantly killed and caused bodily harm to 163 other worshippers.

The court pronounced the four terrorists guilty in all the 9-count charges proffered against them by the federal government and ordered that they be hanged until they died.

The four that will die by hanging are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (25 years), Al Qasim Idris (20 years), Jamiu Abdulmalik (26 years), Abdulhaleem Idris (25 years) while Momoh Otuho Abubakar (47 years) was discharged and acquitted in all the charges

Deciding the case, Justice Nwite held that the “prosecution has proven the charge against the defendants.” He says it is “clear” that they belong to a proscribed terrorist group known as Al-Shabaab.

In count one, the court sentence the four convict to life imprisonment for belonging to the terrorist group and acquits the fifth defendant on that count.

In count two and three, they got 20 years for being the masterminds of the attack in connection with a meeting held on 30 May 2022.

On counts four and five, the court also convicts the first to fourth defendants, while the fifth defendant is discharged and acquitted.

On count six, the fifth defendant is charged mainly with financing terrorism in connection with the attack.

Meanwhile, in count 7-9, the court sentenced them to death upon being found guilty of detonating improvised explosive devices that killed the worshippers.

Justice Nwite held that the prosecution’s evidence “remains credible” and was not effectively challenged by the defendants.

The judge, therefore, discharges and acquits the fifth defendant on that count.

He said that the “Prosecution did not prove that he financed the attack, the judge discharged and acquitted the fifth defendant”

Five accused persons were in 2025 arraigned before the court following their arrest in some parts of Ebiraland in Kogi state and other areas of Ondo state.

During the arraignment, they pleaded not guilty to the terrorism charges.

The Department of State Services DSS called a total of 11 witnesses including an eye witnesses during the attack and security operatives who used call locations and network towers to fish out the convicts.

The prosecution also tendered 23 exhibits including confessional extra judicial statements made by the convicts during interrogation that was witnessed by a Legal Aid Council lawyer, Mr Daniel Hassan,

At the close of the DSS case, the convicts elected to defend themselves without calling any witnesses to support their defense.

However, while reviewing the DSS case, Justice Nwite found that the four convicted persons in 2021 joined a proscribed Al-Shabab terrorist group through one Odoba and held a meeting at Government High School in Ogaminana in Adavi local government area of Kogi where the decision to launch attack against the Catholic Church was hatched.

Similarly, the Judge held that the DSS established beyond reasonable doubt that the four convicted persons detonated an improvised explosive devices that killed

More so, the Judge said that the evidence against the convicted persons were credible, cogent, positive, verifiable and compelling to warrant their convictions.

Justice Nwite dismissed the claims of the convicted persons that their extra judicial statements were made under duress and inducement adding that their signatures and thumb printing on the statements cannot support their dental.