Court reserves judgment in Owo church attack trial

Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court has reserved judgment in the trial of five men accused of involvement in the 2022 attack on St Francis Catholic Church in Ondo State. The defendants are being prosecuted by the Department of State Services over the deadly June 5, 2022 assault on worshippers at the church in Owo.

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Justice Nwite announced that judgment would be delivered on a date to be communicated to both the prosecution and defence teams, adding that parties could receive notice from the court within 24 hours. During final arguments, prosecution counsel Ayodeji Adedipe urged the court to convict the accused persons and impose the maximum penalty of death, arguing that the evidence presented established their involvement in the attack.

According to Adedipe, investigators and security agencies carried out extensive work to build the case, describing the prosecution as part of efforts to ensure accountability for one of the deadliest attacks on worshippers in recent Nigerian history.

Defence counsel Abdullahi Mohammad, however, asked the court to discharge and acquit the defendants, maintaining that the prosecution failed to sufficiently prove the allegations against them. The accused persons are identified as Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, Abdulhaleem Idris and Momoh Otuho Abubakar.

More than 40 people were killed and several others injured when gunmen attacked worshippers during a church service at St Francis Catholic Church in Owo, headquarters of Owo Local Government Area. The massacre triggered nationwide outrage and international condemnation, with widespread calls for authorities to identify and prosecute those responsible for the attack.