Breaking: Court sentences four to death over Owo church massacre

The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced four members of an Al-Shabaab terrorist cell to death by hanging for their roles in the June 5, 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.

The attack, carried out during a Pentecost service, left more than 40 worshippers dead and over 100 others injured.

Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Wednesday after convicting Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, 25; Al Qasim Idris, 20; Jamiu Abdulmalik, 26; and Abdulhaleem Idris, 25, on a nine-count terrorism charge filed by the Department of State Services on behalf of the Federal Government.

The court, however, discharged and acquitted a fifth defendant, Momoh Otuho Abubakar, 47, after ruling that there was insufficient evidence linking him to the attack.

In his judgment, Justice Nwite held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and successfully established the involvement of the four convicts in the terrorist operation.

The judge found that the defendants were principal members of an Al-Shabaab terrorist cell operating in Kogi State and actively participated in the assault on the church.

According to the prosecution, the attackers stormed the church, held worshippers hostage and carried out the attack using improvised explosive devices and AK-47 rifles.

During the trial, the prosecution presented 11 witnesses and tendered 23 exhibits, including confessional statements and a digital forensic examination report.

One of the exhibits admitted by the court was a technophone device said to contain communications exchanged by the defendants before and after the attack.

A Catholic priest who survived the incident testified before the court and recounted how the attackers detonated at least three explosive devices inside the church, causing panic and widespread casualties among worshippers.

Justice Nwite ruled that the totality of the evidence presented firmly connected the four convicts to the attack and justified their conviction on terrorism charges.

The judgment comes almost four years after one of Nigeria’s deadliest attacks on a place of worship, with the court holding that the prosecution had established the defendants’ guilt through witness testimony, forensic evidence and other exhibits presented during the trial.